The Second Chance (sequel to The Fall of Five)
by thesecondgarde
Summary: Eight is gone, Ella is kidnapped, and the Garde are scattered across the country. Betrayed by one of their own, they are now faced with a harder task ahead than they ever expected... CURRENT CHAPTER:20
1. Prologue

**Hey guys! thesecondgarde here !**

**So this is my first story and it picks up right after the ending of FOF... so hope you like it ! Please Review, I would really love to hear your thoughts on this story!**

**DISCLAIMER : I do not own the Lorien Legacies .**

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**PROLOGUE**

THE MONITORS BEGIN TO BEEP AND FLASH. A PIERCING SIREN BEGINS to wail from a speaker on the wall. The night nurse is jolted out of stupor and takes off running towards room 23. Throwing open the door, she looks around urgently, and the machines around the bed confirm her suspicions.

Minutes later the room is filled with doctors and specialists, all of whom gape at the patient, a young girl of 17, as her heartbeat approaches an impossible 178 beats per minute, and then suddenly falls back to normal. They check her vitals and conclude that unbelievably, the girl is alive and moreover, not comatose anymore but merely asleep. They stand back with shocked faces, eyes glued to their patient, debating whether to wake her or to wait.

And then the shaking starts, slowly at first but building steadily. Their shocked expressions turn to fear as the monitors begin swaying wildly and all at once, everything in the room is pushed aside by an invisible force. Machines go flying across the room, their glass displays shattering on impact, their circuitry shorting. The doctors are blown off their feet and thrown against the walls where they slump down, unconscious. The door is blown off it's hinges and the windows are forced open, letting a bitterly cold wind fill the room. And then it's over, just as suddenly as it had begun.

The girl in the hospital bed twitches , showing signs of waking up. Her arms flail out and her legs kick the sheets off her body to reveal her hospital gown, and three circular scars around her ankle. She thrashes about for a few more minutes before going still and then slowly, for the first time in nearly 6 years, she opens her eyes.

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**I love cliffhangers... any wild guesses as to who she is ? :P This was just the prologue, the coming chapters will be longer...so please review ! **

**-thesecondgarde**


	2. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone!**

**First of all, HAPPY NEW YEAR! :P**

Secondly, I'd like to thank **Mysteryfanaticno1** and **GothGirl69** for your reviews, they made my day! :)

**So here is chapter 1, and I'm not going to specify whose POV it is, you will just have to figure it out like in the real books :P ... Enjoy !**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

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**CHAPTER 1**

**SIX**

I GRAB MARINA'S HAND AND TOGETHER WE RUN TO THE WATER'S EDGE, AS FAR AWAY FROM THE MOGS AS WE CAN POSSIBLY GET. OUR BOAT WAS SMASHED to pieces during the battle with Five, and now we need to find an alternative means to get out of here. I set Nine down on the marshy soil and he groans in pain when his body touches the ground. Marina quickly gets to work healing his wounds, but judging by how severe his injuries are and how tired she is after using her new legacy, I know it will take awhile.

I turn around to keep watch for anything that might want to attack us, but the Mogs seem to have their hands full trying to get Five out of the ice. I look down at Marina, who is speaking quietly to Nine as she heals him and try to picture her as she was a few minutes ago, eyes blazing with a cold fury and a snarl on her lips, unforgiving and dangerous. Among all the Garde, she was easily the closest to Eight, but only now do I realize that he meant a lot more to her than what I assumed. His death will change us all, but has, and will change Marina the most. For better or worse is all that's left to be discovered.

And then there's Five. I watch as he struggles to free himself, both hands clutching his now bleeding and useless eye. I should have seen the signs earlier, his reluctance to tell us about his past, his aversion to training and his suspicious flight a few nights before we left. It was clear that something about him was off, but we dismissed any thought of it as his way of adjusting. I would have never pegged him as a traitor, much less a cold blooded murderer, and that scares me. Who can we trust now, or more importantly, who can't we trust?

"Six? I'm done healing Nine", Marina's voice pulls me back to reality. Her face is an emotionless mask, but I can see the pain in her eyes as she stands up pulling a fully healed Nine up with her. "Right", I say, knowing that we now have to focus on finding a way out of here before the Mogs can regroup and attack us. " We need to find something to use as a raft-", I start to say as I turn to check on the Mogs, and what I see stops me short.

A second Mog ship has landed next to the first and Mog soldiers pour out of it while the group that freed Five is now trying to break the ice surrounding Eight's body. I turn quickly, as a startled cry leaves Marina's lips and she starts to run towards Eight. "Marina! It's too dangerous! Come back!", I shout after her but I know its no use. She ignores me, running even faster as the Mogs begin firing on the ice in an attempt to melt it.

"Nine!", I shout turning around and I see that he is already prepared to run in after her. "Lets go!", he says, his eyes filled with anger and hate at the sight of the Mogs. I don't need to be told twice.

I run after her while using my telekinesis to throw some of the approaching Mogs into the water. Nine runs ahead and starts killing the advancing Mogs with his bare hands, ripping them apart and soon ash is flying everywhere. "Nine! Push them into the water! I have an idea!", I shout hoping he can hear me. He does and stops trying to tear Mogs' heads off, and instead uses his telekinesis to send them flying into the marsh. I summon up a thunderstorm and direct my lightning to the water, where it electrocutes them earning a grin from Nine.

"Six!", I hear Marina cry from somewhere behind me and I run towards the sound of her voice. Marina stands next to Eight's ice encased body, using her telekinesis to push the cracks apart, trying to shatter the ice. Ash litters the floor around her. I know that she won't leave unless we take Eight with us, and so instead of trying to reason with her, I join in. Between the two of us it takes a few minutes to break the ice and as soon as it's done I pull Eight's body onto my shoulders and call out to Nine.

"Nine, we got Eight, we have to leave now!", I yell hoping he picks up the urgency in my tone. He whips around to face us and nods, turning around to throw two more Mogs into the swamp before running towards us. He takes Eight from me and nods to the river, where Marina now stands on an ice raft of her own creation and jumps on. "Come on!", she screams pointing to the approaching wave of Mogs behind me and with one final glance over my shoulder, I leap onto the raft and will the river to take us to safety.

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**Yay another chapter ! :) This was Six's POV, but I'm sure you all figured it out :P Whose should I do next? Reviews and suggestions are much appreciated, as is constructive criticism !**

**Oh and the more reviews, the faster I can reveal the identity of the mystery Garde in the prologue... jus' saying ... tee hee :P**

**'Till next time !**

**-thesecondgarde**


	3. Chapter 2

**Hey I'm back !**

Thank you ** . . .Five** , **scone104** and **Mysteryfanaticno1** for your reviews, though I was hoping for a **lot** more reviews...

**So here is Chapter 2 ... and its a bit longer than the last one ... :) . I think my chapters will get progressively longer as the story progresses... anyway, Enjoy!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Lorien legacies ... (unfortunately)**

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**CHAPTER 2**

**JOHN**

I DROP ADAM'S HAND AS A PIERCING HOWL SOUNDS FROM SOMEWHERE ABOVE US. "OH MY GOD! BK!", I SHOUT, MY PREVIOUS STATE OF URGENCY returning instantly. "Who's BK? Another Garde?", Adam asks, confused at my reaction but following me and the chests into the elevator anyway. "My Chimaera", I reply, feeling ashamed of myself for not getting up to the roof the second the battle downstairs had ended. "He went to the roof to fight off a group of Mog soldiers and hasn't come down yet", I say, my fear ringing loud and clear in my voice. "I'm sure he's OK, Four. He is a Chimaera after all, he's pretty powerful even on his own", Adam says in an attempt to pacify me.

The elevator dings as we reach the top level and I don't even wait for the doors to open fully before I jump out and run onto the roof. The wind blows harshly in my eyes, making it difficult for me to keep them open . So I switch to calling out, "BK! Can you hear me buddy?", hoping he can muster the strength to make even a small noise so I can find him. In response, I hear a small whimper from the other side of the roof and I set off running. My heart nearly stops when I find BK in beagle form, lying on a bed of ash and bleeding heavily from wounds all over his body. "BK", I manage to get out as a lump forms in my throat at the sight of his injuries. I crouch down next to him and place my hands on his tiny body, praying for my legacy to start working.

An icy tingle begins to spread down my spine as I hear Adam approaching. "Four!", he calls out, "did you find him?". "He's here", I choke out , the lump in my throat slowly receding as BK's wounds slowly begin to heal. " Whoa!", Adam exclaims, watching a nasty gash close up leaving behind nothing but a thin scar that will fade over time. As the last of his wounds close up, he opens an eye and looks up at me."Hey John, is everyone OK ", he asks in my head.

I shake my head, remembering the new scar on my ankle. I don't bother to stop the tears from falling. I can't bring myself to face the facts, that from seven our numbers have been reduced to five, one missing and one gone forever. BK seems to sense that something is terribly wrong and pushes the leg of my jeans up so my ankle is in full view. He howls again at the sight of the fourth scar there and I look at it for the first time. Burned into my ankle is the Loric symbol for Eight.

I feel like someone has punched me in the gut. I look away but I can't stop the choking feeling from creeping in. I stand up shakily and see Adam looking at me, concern etched all over his face. "Number Eight", I manage, and I don't have to say the rest. Adam's face turns somber as he shakes his head and looks down at the ground. "I'm so sorry", he says his eyes rising to meet mine. "I'm sorry too", I say closing my eyes and breathing deeply in an attempt to calm myself. "This is not the time for this", I tell myself, "you need to find the others before anything else happens". "Four! We've got company!", Adam practically yells and I open my eyes and look at him.

His eyes are fixed on the horizon, from where two army helicopters approach the building. "Damn it!", I say as I do a quick 360, looking for a way to get out of here. "BK, can you fly us out?", I ask looking down at him. He gives his head a shake and says he's sorry, but is too tired to carry anyone. I turn to see Adam pull a machine gun out of my duffle bag and start check the cartridges. " We can't go down, the Police are already in the building. We can't exactly jump to any of the other buildings from this height, the landing will surely kill us. I see no other options", he says casually as he checks the barrel of his gun for obstructions.

I suddenly feel a rush of respect for Adam, who apart from being a traitor to his race and someone I've only just met, is willing to take up arms to fight by my side. "You're right", I say, moving to stand next to him. "Let's give them hell",I say preparing to use my telekinesis to throw the choppers off course. "For Eight?", he says looking straight at me. "For Eight",I say with a nod and the battle begins.

Adam starts firing on the nearest chopper we quickly jump to the sides to dodge the returning wave of bullets from its guns. I use my telekinesis to rip off the tail rotor causing it to spin out of control. "One down, one to go!", I think to myself as the second chopper swoops low over the roof and the sound of gunfire fills the air. I see Adam stand up to fire at the gunman as they turn back towards us and instead watch him get thrown backwards by a volley of bullets. "Adam!", I shout out throwing the gunman out of the chopper with my telekinesis as I run towards him.

He leans against a pillar clutching his stomach where two bullet wounds are bleeding heavily. "Here, let me", I say as I move his hands out of the way and heal him. "Thanks", he says and visibly relaxes as the holes close up. I step back and look for the second chopper, which has disappeared. "Where is -", I start to say before he cuts me off. " They wouldn't like to take you on without any guns now would they?", he says smiling. I smile back. "Take us on, you mean. You're one hell of a good shot ", I tell him and his smile grows. I walk over to the side of the roof and look down. " I have an idea", I shout over to Adam who joins me. " I told you jumping isn't an option-", he starts but now it's my turn to cut him off . "I don't think what I have in mind could be classified as jumping", I say and I explain my idea to him.

Minutes later we are in a controlled descent to the closest building, with me stopping our fall every few feet with my telekinesis. We land on the rooftop and and grab two chests each while BK flies down to the street in pigeon form. We climb down the fire escape and drop into an alley where Adam sets the chests down and leaves to hot wire a nearby car. 10 minutes later we pull up in front of the Lincoln Park Zoo and jump out of our stolen Ford pickup. I run inside holding a chest in each hand with Adam and BK close on my heels, earning me a few weird looks from the other visitors.

I spot Sam near the information desk and I call out to him. "John, you're ok !" he says looking relieved beyond words. "You took so long to get here I thought…", he trails off and I clap him on the back ."We ran into a bit of an inconvenience, but we're here now!" , I say brightly. "We?", Sam begins to ask before looking behind me and catching sight of Adam. "Adam!", he shouts out and pushes past me to give him a guy hug. "It's nice to see you too Sam!", he says trying to contain his laughter at Sam's slightly over-enthusiastic welcome. "Wait 'till my dad sees you're here!", Sam says to Adam, practically jumping up and down and he laughs. Just then Malcolm and Sarah appear behind Sam and catch sight of us. "John!" , Sarah squeals and pushes past Adam and Sam to give me a hug. I kiss her hello and nod at Malcolm who has just finished his reunion with Adam. "Let's go before the cops can set up roadblocks and whatnot", I say and we begin to make for the gates . Suddenly I look down and realize that BK isn't following us. "Where's BK?", I ask, but no one remembers seeing him after Malcolm and Sarah turned up. "BK!", I call, out loud and in my mind and he responds immediately. "I'm coming, and you won't believe who I have with me", he says in my mind. I quickly look around and see him padding towards us followed by a bunch of other dogs. "What is going on?", I ask him as he reaches me and in response he turns around and gives a short bark. The dogs behind him bark back in response before shrinking, and morphing into a flock of birds. "Chimaera…", Malcolm intones in awe as BK turns around to face me. "I called them", he says in my mind, clearly proud of himself, " and they came".

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**Ooh look now they have Chimaera ! :P I'll do Nine's POV soon, but that could take awhile, it all depends on how many reviews I get... :P  
Which pairings should I use? Sam and Six , John and Sarah or Six and John... I really don't mind any so suggestions are welcome!**

**I'm gonna update after I get AT LEAST 15 reviews... and as soon as i get the time, so please please please review ! It really helps me write!**

'Till next time  
-thesecondgarde


	4. Chapter 3 (The Eight Challenge)

**Hello everyone... I know I said I wouldn't update until I got 15 reviews, but I was so excited to write this chapter I couldn't help myself!**

**So this is chapter 3 , and my take on Posk123's The Eight Challenge. So enjoy !**

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**CHAPTER 3**

I SIT IN THE MIDDLE ROW OF OUR "BORROWED" MINIVAN AS SIX DRIVES DOWN THE DESERTED HIGHWAY AT BREAKNECK SPEED. NINE IS SITTING SHOTGUN, snoring loudly as he takes a nap. It's been about 4 hours since we left the Everglades, and we have been driving ever since. We made a quick stop about an hour ago for gas and coffee at a small diner, which luckily had a small computer for customers. It was old and probably slower than the ancient machines I used in Santa Teresa, but it was our only chance to find out if Five was lying about Chicago or not. Six bought a coffee and browsed the net while Nine and I sat at a nearby booth, eating greasy french fries and onion rings.

Well, more like Nine ate and I watched. He offered to get me some but I turned him down on the pretext that I wasn't hungry. I don't really feel like eating. Or sleeping, like Six said I should. In fact, I don't feel like doing anything at all. It's like I'm immune to hunger, sleep and any other feeling you could possibly think of. While my heart still beats on, I feel dead on the inside, numb, cold and lonely.

They told me that they placed Eight's body in the last seat and arranged him so it looks like he's asleep. If only he really was. I haven't been able to bring myself to look at him since I pulled him out of the ice. Looking would be like admitting he's gone, never coming back, and I'm not ready to do that right now. I don't think I'll ever be.

Six confirmed that the penthouse in Chicago was indeed attacked, like Five told us, but that the police found no bodies. That's only a small reassurance, assuming that the survivors chose to leave the casualties behind and not take their bodies along, meaning to give them a proper funeral, as we have. None of us discussed that possibility, though I'm sure it's on all of our minds.

"Marina?", Six asks, pulling me out of my thoughts. She's looking at me through the rear view mirror, and I can see her eyes trying to gauge my emotional state . " There's a motel up ahead and I thought we should find a place to rest. It's getting dark and I don't like the idea of travelling through the night", she says and I nod, indicating that I agree. She shoots me a concerned look through the mirror before returning her focus to the road.

I don't believe Six's reasons for stopping. From what I know of her, travelling through the night would be the her first choice. I realize this stop is probably for my sake, to coax me into getting a few hours of rest while she comes up with a way to contact the others. While I appreciate her concern, it ticks me off that they probably think of me as weak. That they pity me. Pity is the last thing I want right now. Revenge, on the other hand, would be wonderful. Some part of me prays that Five appears in the middle of the road, so I can put my threat to action and give him what he deserves.

Six pulls into the parking lot of a shady looking motel and jumps out of the drivers seat. She stretches as she walks over to the passenger's side door and roughly pulls it open . Nine wakes up with a jolt as he nearly falls out of the car. "Careful Sweetheart!", he yells at her blinking and trying to open his eyes. "Get up Nine", she says and slams the door shut with a loud bang causing Nine to jump out of his seat and hit his head on the roof. "And don't call me Sweetheart", she says through the door as I climb out. Nine follows me out, rubbing his head and swearing like a sailor as Six folds down the middle seat to get access to the back. I instinctively turn away and look at Nine, who is watching me with concern. "Marina", he starts but I wave him off.

He tried to apologize for what happened to Eight back in the Everglades as I healed him, but I told him it wasn't his fault and that apologizing wouldn't bring Eight back. " Nine, leave Marina alone and go get us two rooms", Six orders and he starts walking towards the reception. "I'll bring Eight, you go on ahead", she tells me and I turn to follow Nine.

I reach the reception and find Nine clutching two room keys as he waits for us. I take the keys from him and check for room numbers. "202 and 203", I note to myself as I start walking up the stairs. I find the rooms easily enough and open 203 for Six, who is behind us. She decided to carry Eight in while she was invisible, to avoid questions of why we couldn't wake up our "sleeping" friend and get him to climb up himself. I then proceed to open the door to the second room and step inside.

There are two single beds, a couch, a small bathroom and a door that connects this room to the other next to it. The door opens and Six walks in, clutching an envelope in her hand. She walks up to me and holds it out, and I see my name printed on the front in Eight's messy handwriting. "It fell out of his back pocket while I was putting him on the bed", she says looking up to meet my eyes. I nod a thank you and she gives me a small sympathetic smile before turning around to face Nine. "Come on Nine, lets take a walk!", she announces, grabbing his hand and pulling him out of the door. Before it shuts, she sticks her head around and says, 'We'll be close by Marina. Call out if you need us and we'll be here", before pulling it closed.

I look down at the envelope in my hands and take a deep breath. Letting go, I tear it open to reveal a few wrinkled sheets of paper, stapled together at one corner and covered with writing. A letter. I lower myself onto the couch and start reading.

_Dearest Marina,_

_If you are reading this, it is probably because I'm dead as I find the idea of you finding this letter before that to highly unlikely. I'm writing this in hopes that it can somehow make up for the mistakes I made when I was alive, the biggest one of all being not telling you these things in person._

_The truth is, I love you Marina, and I have had many chances to tell you, but I've been too afraid to admit it. Not only to you, for the fear that you don't feel the same way, but to myself as well. To me, love was always a dangerous thing. It got Reynolds killed and robbed me of the one person who I cared about the most. And then you came along and suddenly, everything changed. I found that loving you didn't make me weak or blind, as I had assumed it would but gave me the strength to look towards a brighter future. A future I hoped to spend with you. Some part of me wants to stop writing now, to find you and tell you right now that I doubt I will survive this trip to the Everglades, that I have always loved you and that I shall continue to watch over you even after I'm gone. But I feel it would be selfish of me to do so, to promise you something I will never be able to give you and that it would break your heart to know that I'm now fully sure that Dulce was not the prophecy foretold on the walls, and that I'm still marked for death._

_I can't stop my hands from shaking as I write these last few lines, as I know fully well that the contents of this letter will never make up for the times I will now never get to spend by your side. Once again, I'm sorry that I never told you earlier, that the time I choose to confess my feelings for you is when I'm gone and only my words in this letter remain to tell you what should have myself, many many hours ago._

_I love you Marina, from the very bottom of my heart and one day I'm sure I'll see you again. But until then, please don't forget me, but find someone who can make you happy because when you smile, Marina, the world becomes a better place._

_Yours forever and always,_

_Eight._

The letter drops from my hands and falls to the ground. A single tear makes it's way down my face and soon it's followed by another, and yet another before I'm sobbing my heart out. The numbness disappears and I feel a sorrow of a sort I have never felt before taking me over as I fall to the floor. And yet in this haze of emotions, only one thing rings clear in my mind. I need Eight.

I get to my feet and throw open the door connecting the rooms .I see Eight on one of the beds, eyes closed, a calm expression on his face and without thinking, I find myself lying down next to him. I curl up against his chest and sob, one hand holding on to his shirt while the other rests over his heart, over the fatal wound that stole him from me. Except I don't feel it there.

I stop crying, and raise my head to take a better look and sure enough, all that remains is a small white scar. I press my ear against his chest, listening carefully and my heart leaps when I hear the sound of his heartbeat, slow and slightly faint, but beating all the same.

"Six! Nine!", I scream out, my voice choked with emotion and I hear them barge through the door. "Marina!", I hear Six call out to me and I reply, "In here!". They come running in through the connecting door and stare in shock as they notice the slight rise and fall of Eights chest as he breathes.

"He's alive!", I exclaim, tears of joy clouding my vision as Six reaches over to give me a hug while Nine stands in the doorway wiping away the tears that have started streaming down his face. Six pulls away and the three of us sit around Eight's bedside. I take his hand in mine, a smile on my face.

He's back.

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**Well I just ****had**** to bring Eight back, and you will find out why and how he's alive in the coming few chapters! Reviews are much appreciated, so please don't hesitate to share your thoughts on this story. More reviews encourage me to write faster and as a result, update faster ! :P**

**So until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	5. Chapter 4

**Hey everyone, I'm back !  
Thank you all for your lovely reviews, they were really encouraging and kept me smiling throughout the day.**

**So here is Chapter 4... I wrote around six drafts of this one chapter before I was satisfied (comparatively ). Its 2000+ words!... so enjoy!**

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**CHAPTER 4**

I OPEN MY EYES AND THE FIRST THING I NOTICE IS HOW COLD IT IS. I TRY TO SIT UP but spots dance across my eyes and I'm forced to lie back down. There's a pipe down my throat and a needle in my left arm, both of which I pull out with a sharp tug. I close my eyes, try to stop my head from spinning, and it all comes rushing back.

The Mogs. The attack on the bus. Conrad. The panic, fear of knowing I was next. The blog post, then regretting that I ever typed it. A quick, impulsive decision that saved my life. The scar burning into my ankle. And then, darkness, broken by fleeting visions and dreams which I can barely memories run through my head so fast, it hurts.

I manage to push myself into a sitting position, shake my head to rid myself of the dizzy feeling that follows and look around, taking in the scenes of destruction surrounding my bed. There are pieces of broken glass all over the floor, and machines lie in crumpled heaps against the walls. The windows have been blown open and all the glass in the room is shattered except for a mirror in the far corner, which is only slightly cracked. Here and there small fires from the shorted machinery struggle to burn against the draft from the windows. And between all of this, people in white coats, doctors, lie still, probably knocked out cold by whatever destroyed the room. The bed, the doctors, the needle and breathing tube all suddenly make sense. I'm in a hospital, I realize as I pull myself to the edge of the bed, my legs hanging out over the side.

That's when I notice that all I'm wearing is a thin, light green colored hospital gown that only covers me until mid-thigh. I shiver from the cold and stare as goosebumps crawl up my bare leg. My gaze travels down my leg, to my ankle where I am shocked to see not two, but three scars. I gasp and feel tears spring to my eyes as I recognize the Loric symbol for three. Number Three is dead. But how did they find him so fast? I my mind racing as I try to find an explanation. "Even if they were tracking him when they came for me, it's still impossible that they got to him so quickly", I reason out.

Unless...

Realization dawns upon me as I stand up. The ground seems farther away than it did before as I struggle to reach the mirror, stepping carefully around the shards of glass on the floor. When I finally get close enough, I look into it, and what I see confirms my suspicions.

The girl who stares back at me isn't 13 anymore. She is around five and a half feet tall and looks to be around 17 or 18 years old. Her dark wavy hair is long, falling well past her shoulders and stopping at the middle of her back. Her coppery skin is pale from lack of exposure to the sun and her once slim figure is now painfully thin. The only thing that hasn't changed are her eyes, still the same shade of startling green.

I tear my eyes away from my reflection and grab a nearby IV pole for support as I start to eyes dart from left to right, sweeping the room and finally landing on a calendar pinned to the wall. I read the header and my heart sinks as I see what year it is.

2013.

I have been asleep -or comatose, if you will- for nearly six years, and I grip the pole tighter, reeling from the shock.

Suddenly I hear the sound of footsteps and voices coming down the hall and the small part of my brain that is still alert screams for me to run. I grab a robe from where it hangs by my bed and pull it on as I scan the room for my Loric Chest, one of the few items I had with me when I ran from the apartment. When I can't find it anywhere, my hand shoots my neck only to find that my Loric Pendant is missing too.

I force down the growing panic and maneuver my way out of the room, into the hallway and take off as fast as my feet can carry me. A few steps are all it takes for the dizziness to return, but I push forward, promising myself rest as soon as I manage to get out of here. As I duck into a storage closet to avoid two doctors making their rounds, I glance at a clock that hangs on the opposite wall . It's 5:30 in the morning, and in a few hours it will be near impossible to get out unseen, unless I spontaneously develop the legacy of invisibility.

My legacies! I remember as I feel the adrenaline rushing into my veins. If I can get them working, getting out of here would become a thousand times easier. My first two had come just two weeks before the attack, though my telekinesis was delayed.

I breathe deeply, focus on clearing my mind and I'm rewarded with a shiver down my spine, a reaction I have come to associate with the activation of my powers. I smile as I open my eyes, thinking of how proud Conrad would be if he could see me.

Conrad, the thought of him gone brings back the tears and I have to bite down on my lip to stop myself from crying. "Focus, Kiara. This is not the time", I hear his voice say in my head as I pull myself together.

I open the door of the closet slightly and look down the corridor. I see a young nurse in pink scrubs waking down the hall toward the elevators and I quickly memorize her face. I close the door and hunt around in the closet until I find an identical set of scrubs that I pull on over my hospital gown, discarding the robe on the ground as I pull on a pair of Crocs to complete the outfit. I then close my eyes and imagine myself changing, my hair fading to a light blonde and stopping just below my shoulders. A tingling feeling spreads all over my body as I imagine my skin lightening to a fair tone and my eyes losing their emerald shade to turn blue.

Once the tingling stops, I push open the door and step out, into the empty hallway. I pass a mirror and smile as I catch a glimpse of myself. I now look nothing like me, but exactly like the nurse I saw earlier. I take a minute to thank Lorien for the fact that my legacies are working before continuing on my way. I walk confidently, keeping a lookout for hospital staff as I look for my chest. |

I turn a corner into another deserted hallway when I hear a man's voice call out, "Mary! Wait up!". I turn to see a man running with a hand outstretched, gesturing for me to wait. He stops in front of me and bends down to catch his breath. He has shaggy brown hair and green eyes, and I have to admit, he's kinda cute. "Stop it! Remember, he thinks you're Mary!", I tell myself and suddenly realize I have no idea how to react if he speaks to me.

"Oh great!", I say under my breath but he hears me. "Is this a bad time?", he asks looking concerned and I find myself blushing. "Not at all James", I reply, reading off his name tag "What is it?", I ask and his face lights up. " I was wondering, maybe we could get a coffee after work, I mean if you want to and if you're free 'coz it's only your first week and Dr. Jones can be really-", he starts to say but I cut him off. " I would love to", I reply with a smile and he visibly relaxes and smiles back. "Great so I'll pick you up at 7 then?", he asks I reply with an enthusiastic nod and he turns to leave.

"Hey James?", I call out, having a sudden stroke of genius, and he turns around with a smile." Yeah?", he asks, "Dr. Jones asked me to pick up the belongings of a patient, but I kinda forgot where to go...", I trail off looking sheepish and his smile grows."First door on the right in the next corridor", he says pointing me in the right direction. "Thanks!", I say smiling at him over my shoulder as I walk away. Well this Mary is one lucky girl -I think to myself as I open the door to the room- I only hope for James' sake that she doesn't already have a boyfriend.

I look around the room, which is filled from floor to ceiling with cardboard boxes and start searching for my chest. As I look, I find a set of clothes and a pair of boots which I pull on gratefully. I find my chest, Loric necklace and backpack in a box at the far end of the room and I heave a huge sigh of relief. I pull my necklace on and my pendant, the Loric symbol for two glows briefly. Slinging my backpack onto my back and tucking my chest under my left arm, I'm just leaving the property room when a siren starts blaring from a speaker above me, and I'm stumped wondering why for a second before it hits me.

They know I'm gone, and now they are looking for me.

I run down the hallway and bump into James talking to Mary, the real Mary. "Mary?", his eyes widen in confusion as he looks from me to her, then back at me. "Um... have a nice date!", I stammer and I turn and run back the way I came as I change back into myself.

I follow the corridor and soon I find myself in the lobby, where I run out of the front doors before the receptionist can cry out. I'm momentarily blinded by the sunlight but I soon recover and set off running. I run as fast as I can, beyond caring if anyone sees me and desperate to get away from the hospital.

I change my appearance as I run and when I stop at small hotel advertising budget rooms and walk into the lobby, I'm a redhead with paisley skin and freckles . Thankfully the receptionist doesn't ask me for an ID as she checks me in under the name of "Mary James". Laughing silently to myself at my name choice, I walk up to my room and collapse onto the bed, exhaustion and dizziness returning as the adrenaline rush recedes.

I'm just about to fall asleep when a sharp pain runs up my leg. I cry out as a fourth scar burns itself into my ankle and my eyes cloud over as the pain intensifies. I blink repeatedly, trying to clear them but the darkness creeps in, undeterred.

The last thing I see before I pass out is my scar, the Loric symbol for eight.

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**And yes, our Mystery Garde is Number Two! How many of you guessed it right? Now I'm sure you're wondering how she is alive, and that will be revealed in the coming few chapters... **

**What did you think of this chapter? What do you want to see next? Let me know ! **

**And so, until next time **

**- thesecondgarde**


	6. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone... thesecondgarde here! **

**It's been exactly a week since I joined FanFiction and posted my first chapter... and I have to admit, it's been an awesome one! I wanted to thank all my reviewers for taking the time to share their thoughts on my story. Their reviews have not only helped me so much in my writing process, but have motivated me to keep on writing and updating. Thanks so much guys!**

**And so, without further ado, here's chapter 5 (My longest so far !)...**

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**CHAPTER 5**

I WAKE UP IN A COLD SWEAT, BREATHING QUICKLY AND SHIVERING. THIS NIGHTMARE WAS WORSE THAN the ones I have normally. It was more real, more vivid than usual and it disturbs me. I close my eyes, taking deep breaths as I try to calm myself and slowly, my heart rate falls back to normal.

I look to my side for Marina or Six, one of them usually sleeps with me in case the nightmares get really bad, but they're nowhere to be seen. They must be getting breakfast, I think to myself as I sit up in bed and rub the last of the sleepiness out of my eyes. I listen for the sounds of the morning, the pans on the stove, the coffee pot boiling away, the sounds of Nine teasing Four or Six, but I hear nothing.

It's completely silent and that sets off the alarm bells in my head. My eyes fly open and I look around, only to find that I don't recognize the room I'm in. It's luxurious, to say the least, but I'm sure this is not Nine's penthouse. I start to panic and call out, "Marina? Six? Are you guys there?". The door swings open and I relax, expecting one of them to come walking in, a concerned look on their face and ask if I'm OK, but I'm wrong.

A tall boy, who looks to be around 17 walks in and catches sight of me. He smiles and I stare at him. His skin is pale and his eyes have dark circles under them. His head is shaved and a series of tattoos cover his skull. His eyes gleam with a sadistic light and I have to suppress a shudder. "Number Ten", he says to me, "what an honor…". His voice is gruff and taunting, and I feel a rush of panic as I realize, he's a Mogadorian. "Stay away from me!", I say as he begins to walk towards the bed and he just laughs. "Or what?", he taunts, and his smile turns menacing as he quickens his pace. I try to read his mind to find some leverage I can use against him but my legacy doesn't seem to be working.

I stand up, the covers falling off me as I grab a lamp off the bedside table, pulling the plug out of the socket and holding it in front of me. "A reading lamp?", he smirks, "If the Loric train to fight us with reading lamps, then I'm surprised they are all not dead already", he sneers at me before adding, "Oh yeah I forgot, they are!". I feel so angry I barely register what I'm doing when I swing out at him, the lamp catching him on the side of his head and shattering on impact. He shakes his head, recovering from the shock and looks straight at me, eyes glaring with malice and fury.

" Now you little piece of -", he starts but is cut off by a voice from behind him saying, "Ivanick!". He turns around and I see a heavyset Mogadorian in an officer's uniform, glaring at him. "General", Ivanick says and looks embarrassed, "I asked you to check on our guest, make her feel welcome and you go about picking a fight with her the second she wakes up?", the General asks and he visibly cowers away. I smirk at his discomfort, but the smirk is replaced by a scowl as the General turns his gaze to me.

"I'm sorry for Ivanick's behavior", he says but in his eyes I can see that he would have liked nothing more than seeing Ivanick snap my neck. I don't respond and instead glare at him, but he doesn't even flinch. "The beloved leader wishes to see you", he continues and this time, using my most mocking tone I reply, "Well I certainly don't want to see old Ra's ugly face, so you can tell him to shove it -". "Don't you dare speak of the leader like that! You Loric scum!", Ivanick yells from his corner, eyes blazing but a look from the General silences him.

"I'm afraid you have no choice in this matter, for as you soon will learn, the leader's word is the law", the General says calmly and snaps his fingers. Two Mog soldiers walk in and pick me up roughly under the arms as I struggle against their tight grip. They drag me out of the room and down a series of twisting corridors until we reach a set of large metal doors, that swing open as we approach. I'm shoved inside and I stand up and look around at what appears to be a type of throne room.

Pillars line the walls and on a large chair on a raised dais sits the bastard himself, Setrakus Ra."Number Ten, or Ella, if I may", he asks as I glare at him, "it's nice to finally meet you, my heir and successor". Heir? I think to myself as he stands up and begins to walk towards me. I stumble backwards but my back hits the steel doors and I know I'm cornered. "I'm not going to hurt you", he says as he nears me and I reach out and slug him across the face, hard enough to leave a nasty bruise. Nine would be proud.

"Unfortunately for you, I can't say the same", I say as I back away and he laughs. "Such bravery", he says and shakes his head, "but for what use? You are destined to take my place someday, my Dear- ", he starts but I yell . "Don't call me dear! And as for being your heir, I wouldn't do it even if my life depended on it! So tell me what you did with the others before I hurt you. You know I can! Remember Dulce?", I ask taunting him and his eyes narrow to slits.

"I have all the time in the world Ella", he warns me but I laugh in his face. "All the time in the world?", I ask him, barely controlling my laughter, "If I were you I would be counting down, writing my will and the likes. The Garde are coming Ra", I say the last word in a mocking tone. " And if you think for one second that they will let your sorry ass walk out of battle alive, then think again", I say finishing with a proud smile on my face.

That's when he loses it. I'm thrown against stone pillars when he swipes out, catching me in the chest. I feel my ribs crack and I groan from the pain. "I considered that you might not want to cooperate", he says leering down at me as I try to stand up, "and fortunately I came up with the perfect solution". He claps and a dozen Mog soldiers march into the room and soon I'm hauled out by force and dragged down the corridors.

It takes me awhile to realize that we are not headed back to the room, but seem to be descending deeper into the base. I panic, knowing that what they have planed for me will be far from pleasant, but quickly force myself calm down and try to figure out a way to escape. I see a fire hydrant fixed on a nearby wall and I focus my mind on trying to lift it. I have only used my telekinesis once before and I have barely had any practice with it, but it's my only hope.

My spirits rise as the metal canister rises a few inches off the stand and begins to float after us. I smile as I position it behind a soldier's head, knowing that timing is everything in such situations. Then all at once, I swing the canister at the back of the Mog's head and he crumples to the ground, unconscious. I take the distraction as an opportunity to free my right hand, with which I punch the Mog on my left. He drops my hand, freeing me from their vice grip and I spin around to face them.

They come at me brandishing blasters and knives and I ready myself for their attack. I rip a blaster out of the hands of an approaching Mog and use it to take out four others before the first one reaches me. I duck as he swings his knife and shoot him in the leg and he goes down. I blast away, picking off Mogs until I'm standing in a pile of ash. I grab another fallen blaster in my left hand and turn to run back the way we came but I'm stopped by a strong grip around my waist from behind.

"Now where do you think you're going?", a voice asks in my ear as the blasters are ripped from my hand by two more Mog soldiers. Ivanick, I recognize the voice as he carries me the remaining way, his grip way too strong for me to fight. But I try and get hit hard upside the head for my efforts. We reach another set of steel doors and Ivanick hands me to another Mog soldier as he opens it with a special code and a hand scan. I try to see the combination but he blocks the keypad with his body as he types.

The doors open and I'm led inside, to what soon becomes clear as a prison block. I pass rows of empty cells before I am thrown into one at the far end of the room and the door is locked. "Enjoy your stay, Number Ten", Ivanick sneers and I'm suddenly faced with the urge to tell him that I am not in fact, Number Ten, but a rich guys daughter who got a lucky ticket off the planet. But I hold my tongue, knowing that them thinking I'm Ten is probably the only reason I'm still alive and instead look around my cell. It's tiny, by all standards and bare of any furniture.

I settle myself down in a corner and start to think of ways to escape when a familiar voice startles me out of my thoughts. "Ella? Is that you?", it asks and I recognize it immediately, even though I have barely known him for a week. "Five?", I ask and I hear a sigh of relief. "It's me.", he replies from somewhere on my right, " are you OK? Where are the others? Are they here ?", he asks, panic ringing in his voice.

"I'm alright, and it's only me. I don't know where the others are. Is Marina here?", I ask my tone clearly showing my worry and fear. "No, they all got away. We were ambushed in the Everglades and they managed to capture me, but the all others could get out, almost all at least", he replies and my heart stops. "Almost all, Five?", I ask and he slowly responds,"There were too many of them, Ella, we tried our best, he tried his best but they got him anyway…. they killed him Ella, they killed Eight", he says his voice faltering. "They? The Mogs?", I ask not believing him and he responds, "The Mogs", he repeats and I start crying.

Eight is gone, dead, never coming back.

"I'm so sorry Ella..", Five says and I pull myself together enough to say it's OK. "Listen, Ella", he says suddenly all business, "I know you want time to grieve but we really need to get out of here. These cells are legacy proof, I've already tried and I can't think of any way to get out. I need you to tell me everything you know and have heard about our legacies, maybe we can find a way to beat this", he says and I stop sobbing.

His tone and word choices are fishy and I suddenly don't trust him. I remember my dream, where I saw Six being led up to be executed by a man with an eye patch. I didn't really get a clear look at his face but now I'm certain it's Five. "I really don't know anything more than you do", I lie, remembering my legacy at Dulce, that allowed me to render Ra's anti legacy charm useless. "Well, is there anything you know that can help us get out of here. Tell me, we're a team and -", he starts to say before he is cut off by the sound of my cell door opening.

A Mog I have never seen before stands in the doorway along with a group of soldiers. He smiles down at me as he says, "So you are the little one who refuses to cooperate, huh? We'll lets see if I can't teach you some manners". I am once again lifted out of my cell and carried to a table where my hands, legs and head are secured with leather straps. The Mog returns, carrying a tray full of knives.

He picks up a small dagger, laying it against my cheek and asks, "Are you in a mood to cooperate now?". I work some saliva in my mouth and spit at him and he smiles. "Very well then, we'll do this the hard way", he says as he brings the dagger down to my skin and I can't hold back a scream as he makes a deep cut in my arm, followed by three more by which time I'm sobbing.

I close my eyes and pray for it to end. "Marina, Nine, John! Help me!", I scream in my head as the pain intensifies and I black out.

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**So... tell me what you think! Oh and Mysteryfanaticno1... good question, and trust me when I say I have an answer... :) **

**Until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	7. Chapter 6

**I'm back! **

**Before I get on with the chapter, I would like to say a big thank you to NumeroCinco, your review encouraged me to spend a marathon 4 and a half hours writing this chapter. Also a HUGE thank you to Mysteryfanaticno1, Posk123 and scone104, who have been reviewing all my chapters as they are posted and have been a huge encouragement.**

**So now on to chapter 6!**

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**CHAPTER 6**

I WAKE UP AND SQUINT THROUGH THE BRIGHT LIGHT ABOVE ME AS MY EYES ADJUST TO THE CHANGE. IT'S THE SECOND TIME IN 24 hours that I'm waking up somewhere I don't recognize, and I worry that it seems to be becoming somewhat a habit. When I'm finally able to open my eyes, I sit up and take a quick look around before concluding that I'm sitting in the center of a clearing.

There is soft green grass below me, and trees all around. Here and there, I catch glimpses of animals in between their swooping branches, but I can't really make them out. I stand up, preparing myself for the vertigo that I faced at the hospital, but it doesn't come. Instead, I feel stronger, revitalized, for want of a better word and I can't help but laugh. It's a wonderful feeling, and something about this place makes it seem safe, safe for me to enjoy myself without worrying about the next threat or attack.

I run towards the treeline and into the thick jungle. While it's difficult to see clearly through all the green, somehow I'm sure I'm going in the right direction though I have but a clue as to where I'm headed. I then hear the sound of running water and judge it's source to be somewhere to my right. I set off, now relying on my hearing to direct me and I soon find myself at a small stream. I move forward, tempted by the clear water when I notice a young doe standing at the water's edge, graceful neck bent as it drinks water. I step back, mesmerized and afraid of scaring her away when it suddenly looks up and straight into my eyes.

I stare back, not knowing how to react and slowly, the deer begins to change. It shrinks down until it's about a foot above the ground and its brown coat changes to a shade of pure white. And before my eyes, the doe transforms itself into a snowy white cat and jumps over the stream in one effortless leap before landing near my feet. The cat gives a short meow and I bend down, stroking it's fur as I stare at it in wonder. Animals that change shape, I think to myself and a single word springs to my mind. Chimaera. Conrad had told me about special loric beasts that could change their shape, and about how they fought alongside the Garde during the invasion. But he had told me they were unique to Lorien, and if the planet cannot sustain life anymore, then where am I ?

As if sensing my confusion, the cat looks up once more and on a crazy impulse I look it in the eye and ask, "Where am I?". The cat meows again before sprinting off into the jungle, leaving me to battle the vegetation as I chase after it. I hear the sounds of water crashing down from a height and soon find myself in a clearing similar to the one I woke up in, except this one has a huge waterfall and rocky cliffs. And this time, I'm not alone. The cat I met earlier is now lying at the feet of a boy with dark curls, who is stroking it's fur while he looks around.

His eyes land on me, just as I'm about to call out to him and he stands up, his eyes narrowing as he gives me a once over. I walk slowly towards him and I find myself examining him too. Apart from his hair, which is rather long and unruly, he is tall and and muscular despite being very thin. His skin is tan, like mine but that's not what catches my attention.

It's his eyes, they're the same emerald green and putting it all together, I can't help but notice something, and I have to say something.

"You look like me!", we both exclaim in unison and then he looks surprised, as if he did not expect me to come to that conclusion. "Touché", I reply and suddenly, he's standing next to me. I jump back from the shock, and am wondering how he managed to get here so quickly when he pokes me in the shoulder, hard. "Ow!", I exclaim, "What was that for?". "Sorry", he says looking a little sheepish, "had to make sure you were real and not some illusion. Now that I've done that, tell me, who are you?". "Seriously?", I ask him, "You're just going to ask what Number I am? How do you even know I'm a Garde?". He points down at my leg and I follow his finger to my ankle.

Only then do I realize that I'm in a white tank top and denim shorts that leave my scars on full display. "Oh", I say feeling stupid and he grins at me, extending a hand as introduces himself, "I'm Eight, but I'm also called Joseph". "I'm Two, but I prefer Kiara", I say, smiling as I shake his hand, "and if you don't mind me asking, how exactly did you die before Seven, or even Four for that matter?". "We found each other and the charm broke", he starts to explain, motioning for me to sit down and I do.

"A few days ago we met up with Number Five, the last Garde we were looking for, but he turned out to be a traitor and stabbed me through the heart", he says casually and I stare at him like he's crazy as I blurt out ,"He stabbed you through the heart! How can you be so calm about it?". "Well I'm dead now, there's nothing much I can do", he says and before I open my mouth to protest he asks me, "Speaking of dead, how exactly are you not dead?". "How do you know -", I start to ask but then realize, "I have your scar on my ankle", I say and he nods, chuckling at my initial confusion. "Well, to be honest, I'm not exactly sure, but I'll tell you- ", I start but I never get to finish my sentence because at that moment, I hear someone shout out, "Kiara! Joseph!".

Eight and I turn towards the sound and standing before us are two men. One who I don't recognise and one who I will never forget. "Conrad!", I scream throwing my arms around him and he picks me up, laughing as he twirls me in the air before putting me down and pulling me into a hug. "Kiara, thank god you are OK. I tried to hold them off, to give you some time to figure out a way to escape but-", he starts but I stop him before he can finish.

"You don't have to apologize. You were, and are the best Cêpan ever. It wasn't your fault that they found us, they were bound to eventually and what you did for me is probably one of the biggest reasons why I'm still alive", I say and he smiles. He pulls away and looks at me before remarking, "My, you have grown up quite a lot since I last saw you". He shakes his head in disbelief and catches sight of my scars. "Are you sure you are alive?", he asks me, suddenly looking worried as he continues, "You have your own scar on your ankle". I nod and explain briefly the complicated series of events, starting from when I saw the news about the bus to when I remember seeing the new scar before I passed out. His expression is unreadable when I finish and he takes a few seconds to process what I have said before turning to the other man, who has his arm around Eight.

I realize that this must be his Cêpan, and also that he must have died too, judging by the somber looks on their faces as they speak quietly to each other. "Reynolds", Conrad says and they look up, "remember we don't have much time". "Right", the man- Reynolds- says as he releases Eight and turns to me. "You must be Kiara. I'm Reynolds, Joseph, or Eight's Cêpan", he introduces himself and I turn to Eight. "And that, Eight, is how you introduce yourself", I say referencing his previous greeting and he shakes his head, chuckling. "I'm Conrad, Kiara's Cêpan. It's nice to meet you, Eight", Conrad says extending a hand for Eight to shake and he takes it with a smile. "It's great to meet you too", he says and I find myself smiling.

"Now that introductions are over, it's time to get down to business", Reynolds says and motions to Conrad to begin. "Eight, Kiara, as we said earlier we don't have much time, so please hold on to your questions while we explain this", he says looking pointedly at me and I nod, understanding. "We were sent here to offer you two a choice, one that you must make together and also explain a few things before we do. What you decide to do rests completely in your hands, but know this, your choice could change the outcome of this war", he says and nods to Reynolds to continue.

"For you to fully understand this, we'll have to start at the beginning. The day of the Mogadorian invasion was also the Loric festival of the Quartermoon, the day Lorien's twin moons hang parallel in the sky. Most know it to be celebrated in remembrance of the day out elders discovered the Phoenix stones, brought the Chimaera to Lorien and gave the planet a new life but there is more to it than just that. The Quartermoon signifies balance, a perfect equilibrium which when maintained brings peace and prosperity, that Lorien enjoyed for many years. It was the day of our planet's rebirth, and later became the day of it's demise, though we hope that will not be the case. Now you are probably wondering what this has to do with you. If you have not noticed, or realized in which case Conrad and I will have to admit to raising rather unobservant charges, you two look similar".

At this Eight and I nod, and Reynolds continues, "Well then I suppose that it wouldn't come as too much of a shock to you if I told you that you are twins..", he trails off and I blurt out, "That's not possible! I'm sure I'd be able to recognize my brother when I see him, and I don't remember having any siblings!". "Me neither", Eight adds looking just as confused as I am, and I look to Conrad for an explanation.

"That's because you were made to forget. Knowing would make you want to seek each other out and if you were to succeed, it could cause the charm to break prematurely, putting all the others in danger". "But- ", I start to protest but a look from Conrad silences me as he continues, "Twins were rare on Lorien, and twins like you, a boy and girl were one in a million. You two attracted a lot of attention when you were born and even the Elders took notice. It was as if it was prophesied that you two were important to our planet, even then. You showed great potential, even at a very young age and soon we approached your parents, Rhea and Marc and sought their permission to enlist you for the plan of sending you to Earth in the event of a cataclysmic attack on Lorien. They agreed, but then I don't think they ever believed that it was going to happen, and truth be told, neither did we. We were assigned to you when you were about six years old, and a year later, the unthinkable happened. While casting the charm that protected you, Loridas also included a second charm, one more unlikely to work than the first, but if it did, would change the fate of our planet. Your placement was not random. As second from the first and last, you were to bring the balance needed in the order, and as we believed back then, you would be the ones to unite the Garde. The charm placed on you prevented either of you from dying until the other did too, and then, you would be given a choice, the one we are giving you now. However, things are a little more complicated than we thought", he says and proceeds to repeat my explanation for how I survived and when he's finished, Reynolds lets out a low whistle and Eight stares at me in disbelief.

"But it appears that since whatever happened resulted in the charm breaking and the formation of your scar I think we can safely assume things are still on track. We are here to offer you two a second chance at life, and you can choose to either accept or decline, but know that what you choose affects you both, and accepting comes with a price. If you choose to accept, another Garde will lose their life, not immediately but in the due course of time, in order to maintain the balance. A life for a life, or in this case, one life for two", he says. "You need to decide now", Reynolds says and Eight and I turn to each other.

His expression is filled with guilt, and mine is too. Who are we to seal the fate of one of our own? "Kiara", he starts, "I really don't want to die", he says, being fully honest and I blurt out, "Me neither, but it's not fair…". "Nothing is ever fair, that's life", he says shaking his head and I pick up, "But this is war, Eight!". "And this war is our life, not all of it, but a big part. I know I sound heartless but..". "You want to accept", I say my voice low and he nods. "It's a war, there will be casualties, but fate has been changed before. I'm alive, aren't I?", I ask, wanting his confirmation and he responds, "We can change it again. Between you and me, we'll find a way around this". We turn to our Cêpans and explain our decision and they nod, understanding our intentions. "I wish I could tell you whether it's the right choice, but I don't know that myself", Conrad says shaking his head and Reynolds says, "You will wake up soon, and I suggest that you take this time to figure out how you are going to get to America, Kiara".

"I'll fly", I say but I know it's too risky even before it comes out of my mouth. "Too risky, especially now you are alone", Conrad says, confirming my suspicions and I nod. "Can you teleport?", Eight asks and I look at him, confused. "Teleport? Not that I know of", I reply and he's suddenly hopeful. "Have you ever tried?", he asks and I shake my head. "It was your mother's legacy", Reynolds says and then adds, "it's actually very possible that you can, and you don't know it because you have never tried".

"But I was in coma!", I say and Conrad shakes his head, "That should have no effect on your legacies, they develop with time, training can only speed them up". "Try it then!", Eight says and seeing my confused expression, adds, "close your eyes and imagine yourself standing next to Conrad". I do as I'm told and after a few seconds I feel a tug in my gut.

I open my eyes to see Conrad next to me, and I know that it worked. "I did it !", I say, dancing with joy and Eight explains about loralite stones around the world and how I can use them to teleport long distance. He tells me the closest one to me is the Stonehenge- which he claims he nearly destroyed the last time he visited- and that I can use it to teleport to the New Mexico desert, where he says he will be waiting for me. "But what if I can't?", I ask him, suddenly worried and he says, "You can, and I know it. I'll see you soon … sis". He gives me a smile and suddenly, the floor gives way and I feel like I'm falling.

I wake up in my hotel room and check the digital clock on the wall, that tells me I have been asleep for a day. I swear when I realise that Eight has probably already reached New Mexico, and that I'm still nowhere near Stonehenge. I change myself to my "Mary James" appearance and head out, taking my few belongings with me. I head straight for Waterloo station and buy tickets to Salisbury.

The train ride takes about an hour and a half, during which time I sort through the contents of my backpack and discard some old clothes and other junk I know I won't need anymore. I reach Salisbury and hop on a tour bus to Stonehenge. I want teleport but Eight said long range teleportation requires a lot of energy, and so I try to conserve mine. I am the first one off the bus and I immediately start circling the monument in search of the Loralite Eight mentioned.

I don't see it anywhere and I'm about to assume that he was mistaken when I catch a glimpse of something blue at the edge of one of the rocks. Upon closer inspection I see that it's crystalline, made of the same material as my loric pendant.

I've found the loralite.

I stand as close to it as possible and close my eyes, pulling up a mental picture of Eight's description of New Mexico. I focus as hard as I can, not wanting to teleport anywhere else by mistake. Eight's description of Somalia is far from appealing. Just as I'm starting to wonder whether my teleporting only worked in the dream world or whatever when I feel a sharp tug in my stomach, and the world around me begins to spin.

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**Confused ? I would be surprised if you're not... And you're gonna have to wait a few more chapters before Two tells you how she survived... :P**

**I'm sorry it's rushed and not up to my usual standard, but I really HAD to finish all of these events in a single chapter for the rest of the story to make sense, and yet I did not want it to be so long ...**

**So please tell me what you think and how I can make this story better. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me...**

**Until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	8. Chapter 7

**Hey everyone!**

**Thank you so much for your reviews for my previous chapter! And here's chapter 7!**

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**CHAPTER 7**

"EIGHT?', I HEAR MARINA ASK AND MY EYES FLY OPEN. I SEE HER TO MY RIGHT, SLEEPING WITH HER HEAD ON HER ARMS. I SMILE, she looks so peaceful when she's asleep and I don't want to wake her. I try to sit up slowly, but the little movement is enough to rouse her from her sleep and she looks around blearily. And then her eyes land on me, now sitting up in bed.

"Eight!", she cries and throws her arms around me and I pull her into a tight hug. I can't tell if she's laughing or crying as she buries her head in my neck and so I ask, "Marina, are you OK?". She looks up at me, her eyes brimming with tears and nods with a small smile. I grin and pull her back to me, not wanting to let her go anytime soon. She pulls away slightly and looks up at me, straight into my eyes. She looks like she's expecting me to say something, to do something and when I don't respond immediately, her face falls.

The letter, I realize with a jolt, she read the letter. I suddenly feel guilty and as I stare into her eyes. I know that if I don't do anything now, I'll probably lose her forever, something I will not allow to happen and so when she is about to look away, I place my hand on her cheek, lean down and kiss her. It's not like the first time in India, or even like when she kissed me at Dulce. This kiss is incredible.

I pull her closer, wrapping my arms around her waist as her's tangle themselves in my hair. She kisses me back slowly, and I find myself opening my eyes every now and then just to look at her. She pulls away, much too soon, though we are both breathless, and I take the chance to finally tell her how I feel. "Marina, I love you", I say softly looking into her eyes and she smiles. She kisses me softly before whispering against my lips, "I love you too".

I'm grinning like an idiot when I pull her in for another kiss, and we barely get a few seconds before someone clears their throat loudly and we jump apart. "I would normally tell you folks to get a room, but since you technically had one when you started, well, it wouldn't have the desired effect", Nine says from the doorway, smirking as he walks over to the bed and helps me up. "It's about time you woke up, sleeping beauty. Six has been going mad over how we need to get out of here and-", he starts but I interrupt, "Sleeping beauty? Why Nine, I never knew you thought I was beautiful!", I tease putting on my best girly voice and Marina laughs.

"Very funny Eight", he says, clearly not amused by my jokes, "Six should be back soon, and we will probably have to leave as soon as she gets here. So you might wanna get serious and get moving before she blows a gasket".

"Before I blow a gasket, Nine?", Six says from the doorway, looking very amused. "It's a figure of speech sweetheart", Nine says and she rolls her eyes at him. "How long have you been standing there?", Marina asks her and she replies with a sly smile, "Long enough. Tell me Nine, what is it about Eight that you find so attractive? His hair, or his eyes?". "Why sweetheart? Are you jealous?", he asks wagging his eyebrows jokingly and she elbows him in the gut as she walks past him, towards me. "And you", she says, sounding kind of mad, "Don't you EVER die on us again! I swear if you ever -", she starts to threaten me and I cut her off with a hug. "You know Six, it's OK to say you missed me", I tease and she grunts, but hugs me back anyway.

"Now", she says pulling away, "since we are all up and awake, we have really got to get out of here. We'll grab a car and-". "We need to go to New Mexico, near Dulce", I say urgently, suddenly remembering my dream. "New Mexico?", Six asks and she looks at me like I'm crazy. "Eight, we really need to find the others-", she starts but I cut her off, my voice rising with my worry as I realize that for all I know, Kiara could already have teleported. "I had a dream! Or whatever you have when you are dead and I met another Garde, Number Two and she's also my sister and I -". "Eight! Slow down!", Marina says and I stop, realizing that I was rambling, "Slow down, we're listening", she says and I do.

"When I was dead, or comatose or whatever, I had a dream in which I was on Lorien, Lorien before the invasion that is. I was looking around when I heard somebody in the bushes and I turned to see a girl, about my age. The crazy thing was, we looked alike. I'm not even kidding when I say that she looked so familiar, I was positive I had seen her somewhere before. She introduced herself as Number Two but said she preferred Kiara. We got talking and that's when I noticed something strange, she had four scars on her ankle", I say pausing to take a breath and Six asks, "So? We all do!".

"Yes, but we're still alive! She had four even though she is supposed to be dead!", I exclaim and of all people, Nine seems to understand. "You're saying you think she never died?", he asks looking skeptical and I reply, "I know she didn't. But I'll let her explain that part, since I'm not really sure I remember all of it. Anyway so we were talking and then we hear someone yelling our names and we turn around to see our Cêpans, Reynolds and Conrad, who was her's. They told us some stuff about our past, how we were destined to protect Lorien and about how our placement in the order wasn't as random add it then gave us a choice, of coming back to life or staying dead, and we obviously accepted. And then- ", I say but Marina interrupts, "They just let you CHOOSE? No conditions?", she asks looking suspicious.

"Yeah, it was something to do with a second charm Loridas cast over the two of us to help us fulfill our destiny or something", I lie, not wanting to tell her about the price we agreed to pay for our lives, suddenly realizing that she could very well be the life taken in exchange. I hold my breath as she tries to judge whether I'm lying to her or not, until, satisfied she nods, indicating I should continue. "Anyway", I say, gulping as I try to push down the guilt of lying to her, "we then had to find a way to get her here, since she's currently in London, and flying is not an option as it's too risky. I suggested teleporting, and it crazily turns out that she can do it too! Apparently it was our mother's legacy. So anyway, I told her about the loralite stones and how she could use the Stonehenge to teleport to New Mexico where we would be waiting for her. And so we gotta go, now!", I finish and catch my breath.

Six looks thoughtful for a moment before replying, "I see no reason to believe that the dream was a trick or anything, as you were technically dead and I'm sure Setrakus Ra can't control the underworld, so I believe you". "Thank you", I say and turn to Marina and Nine, who are both nodding. "There's only one problem", Nine says, "It'll take us more than a day to get there by car". "So we fly", I say, knowing that there's no way Kiara can wait that long in the desert. "Well I'm sure I can use some of Sandor's old bank accounts for cash, I hope they haven't been frozen now that the cops are crawling around my penthouse", Nine says with an edge in his voice and I remember what Five had said about a raid. "Five was telling the truth?", I exclaim, furious at his betrayal and Six replies, "Unfortunately, yes. But don't worry about him getting his share of punishment, Marina took out his eye and impaled his foot with her new ice legacy".

"Wait, what?", I say, not able to believe that Marina could be so violent and turn to her for confirmation. "He deserved worse", she says and I'm in shock. "Marina, I didn't know that-", I start but she stops me saying, "It doesn't matter. Right now we need to focus on getting to New Mexico". That sets things in motion and we all prepare to leave. Marina and I grab and pack the few items we brought while Nine goes down to the reception to find a computer. Six heads out to go get us a car from a nearby lot and returns a few minutes later with Nine following her after 5 minutes or so.

"Got us a car, it's idling outside so we can leave the second you're ready", she announces and Marina responds, "We're all done here. What happened with the tickets Nine?". "Thankfully, Sandor's account's weren't frozen, so it was easy enough to book the tickets, not counting the prehistoric machine and pathetic connection I had to use to do it. And after all that, I even went the extra mile -literally- to the bank and managed to get us some cash, it's not much but it's enough for now... I didn't want to raise any red flags", he says and I have to admire his sudden seriousness. "Thanks Nine", I say and he grins, "and if we're done here, can we leave now?".

We quickly check out and jump into the car. The airport is a 2 hours drive away, but between Six and Nine's crazy driving, we get there in one. We reach the gates just in time for boarding and Marina and I get on the plane while Six and Nine follow us after everyone else has boarded, keeping an eye out for Mogs. I give Marina the window seat, and I sit down next to her. She pushes up the armrest and curls up into my side and I put my arm around her. "Get some sleep", I tell her when she yawns. "You too", she tells me and I pull her closer, rest my head on hers and close my eyes.

Sleep comes easily, and for once, it's not full of nightmares. I see myself and a green eyed girl, who I recognize to be Kiara, blowing out the candles on a birthday cake. The scene shifts and I see us again, playing on the swings in a park, and then playing with two Chimaera in a grassy field. We look so comfortable, so happy that it relaxes me and I'm sure I'm smiling. And then the scene shifts again. I see destruction, bodies lying here and there. It's the day of the invasion. Kiara is next to me, her eyes fearful as we run up to the ship and take our places in line. I see the charm being cast, and the others walk up the ramp and disappear inside until it's only the two of us left. The man casting the charm, Loridas, turns to us and says something and she looks desperately at me before giving me a hug, whispering something in my ear. She's crying when she pulls away and I'm sure I am too. Loridas says a few more words and our bodies shine with a blue light for a few seconds before returning to normal. We are then pushed into the spaceship, and the door closes behind us.

I wake up to Nine shaking my shoulder saying we've landed, and I'm still too dazed by my dream to comprehend what he's saying. "Eight! Come on!", Six says pulling me out of my seat and I turn to find that Marina is already awake. We get off the plane and head out to the parking lot to find a car to hot wire. We pick a minivan, which by the layer of dust over it, hasn't been used in a while. Six opens the doors with telekinesis and I slip inside. Nine takes his place in the driver's seat and I wait for Marina to slide in next to me, but she stands at the door, her face reflecting disbelief. "What is it?", I ask, leaning over to look out, my mouth falling open as I see what she's looking at.

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**I really have a thing for cliffhangers... :P**

**I was thinking about doing a separate drabble story for the memories Eight sees in his dreams... what do you think? Should I go ahead with it?**

**Please tell me what you liked/didn't like about this chapter so I can make the next one better!**

**Oh and if I reach more than 32 reviews (modest target :P), I will update tomorrow, otherwise, you're gonna have to wait a bit longer for chapter 8... :P**

**So until next time!**

**-thesecondgarde**


	9. Chapter 8

**Hey everyone I'm back!**

**I have 33 reviews and over 1000 views! Thank you all so much! Also a shout out to Tom and Posk123, whose reviews were incredibly helpful and encouraging! Also a big thanks to everyone else who reviewed my last chapter.**

**So as promised, here is chapter 8!**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own the Lorien Legacies... **

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**CHAPTER 8**

ADAM WALKS FORWARD, BENDS DOWN NEXT TO THE CHIMAERA AND HOLDS OUT HIS HAND AND one of the small birds flies up into it. "Hey Dust", he says and the bird tweets in response before transforming into a large fox. "You have a Chimaera?", John asks him and Adam nods a yes as he explains, " I met Dust back when I escaped from Dulce", he says and proceeds to tell us about how he struck a deal with another Mog named Rex, who told him about a facility on Plum Island where the Mogs were rumored to be running experiments on Chimaera. Adam says that he managed to get into the building to rescue five Chimaera, but unfortunately had to leave two behind. "And then just as I was about to leave, I chanced upon an empty control room and decided to gather some info. That's where I found the plans to attack the John Hancock Center and some other notes on the Garde. After reading through them, I was sure that you guys were here and called up Malcolm to warn you, but I guess I should have done it a bit sooner...", he trails off but John speaks up, "Adam, your warning saved our lives. All our lives", he says gesturing to the rest of us and we nod.

"Saving the Chimaera, and then us? Dude, you've done more on your own than anyone ! We should be the ones apologising, for not coming to the aid of one of our own", John finishes and claps a surprised but happy Adam on the back before saying, " Now that we're all together again, I suggest we get a move on before the Mogs pull some strings and call lock down". We nod and make for the entrance, where we grab the chests and a duffel bag full of weapons from their stolen pickup truck before heading to the parking lot. We find a beat up hybrid that Adam starts after John opens the locks with telekinesis and we pile in. We drive towards the outskirts of the city, and the Chimaera follow us as birds keeping an eye on us from above.

"John?", I ask and he turns around, eyebrows raised, "back in the penthouse, remember when I asked you what it meant when your ankle lit up?", I say prompting an answer and his expression turns pained as he replies. "When we left Lorien, a charm was placed on us by which, in the event of one of us dying, the others would get a scar on their ankles. It was supposed to be a warning system while the number charm still held." And then I understand what he means. We've lost someone. The realization hits me like a ton of bricks and I struggle to keep my voice steady as I ask, "Who?". John takes a minute to compose himself and all the while I'm thinking, not Six, please not Six. I know it's selfish, but I can't lose her, not after I told her how I felt. Not after she told me how she felt. "Eight", John says, looking down and Sarah gasps beside me. Dad slams on the breaks and turns around, his face a mask of horror and shock. Adam looks upset too, and he's never even met Eight.

"Poor Marina", Sarah says softly as tears run down her face and John reaches over to wipe them away, "I can't even imagine how she would be feeling right now…". It takes us a few minutes to settle ourselves and a few more tears are shed before we can get moving again. "We need to find the others", John says taking charge, "Since they don't have their chests, the Macrocosms are useless and even so, I wouldn't want to use them. I have a very strong feeling that the Mogs have their hands on one". "How could they?", I ask, "A Garde's chest can only be opened by it's owner right? So you think they found one in one of the dead Garde's chests and are using it?". "Nope, when a Garde dies, the lock on their chest opens and the contents turn to ash, Henri told me. That's not what I mean….", he trails off and Adam's eyes widen in shock.

"You think one of the Garde has joined the Mogs?", he asks and John nods. "In fact, I think I even know which one it is", he says and tells us about his dream, in which he says he saw Number Five in an eye-patch, wearing a Mogadorian Uniform. "Are you sure?", Adam asks and John nods, "I'm sure it was him, it explains why he was so reluctant to train with us!", he reasons out. "I believe John", Sarah says quietly, "If there wasn't anyone giving them information, how could the Mogs have found the penthouse after all of Nine's security?". She has a valid point and slowly I find myself believing all that has been said so far. "If you're right, then the Mogs know almost everything", I say now slightly worried, "All your legacies, all our plans, the items in the chests…". "Everything", John agrees, "and that's why we have to find the others, and warn them before something worse happens". "We can use the tablet", my Dad supplies from the front seat and John reaches down to retrieve it from the bag at his feet. He pulls it out, hands it to me and I switch it on, watching the world map appear on the screen. I find us immediately, the solitary dot moving slowly away from Chicago and then turn my attention to the rest of the map. What I see nearly makes me drop the tablet in surprise. I blink my eyes, pinch myself and check again, but it's still there, clear as day.

There are four dots now moving slowly through Florida, one moving eastwards, which is probably Ella, and two others, one in what I think is DC, and one in England. "John, man you have got to see this", I say handing him the tablet and his eyes widen in shock before he replies, "Restart it… It has to be a glitch, this can't be possible". I restart it but when the map comes up again, the two extra dots are still there. "Dad, stop the car", I say and he pulls over to the side of the road and turns around in his seat. I show them the tablet, earning a gasp of surprise from Adam and Sarah and we try to understand what this means for us. "One of the dots is near DC, and there's a huge Mog base at about the same location, Ashwood Estates", Adam says slowly, eyes glued to the map. "Then that's Five", John says, " Where else would he be? If he is indeed a traitor, then it's no surprise he's in the Mog base". "Or maybe one of the others got captured", Sarah suggests and John shakes his head. "Five people went to the Everglades, one of them is a traitor and one of them is …. gone", he says, "that dot is Five, I'm positive". "Then who's the other one in Florida then?", I ask, confused and my father answers, "We assume that we lost Eight in Florida which makes three dots, but what if….", he trails off, but we get the if somehow, Eight is not dead.

"The Chest!", I say and I turn around, reach over and pull Eights Loric Chest into my lap. I turn it so the lock faces me and I pull on it, but it holds firm. I hand it John, who tries himself before turning back to me, a smile on his face. "I don't know how it's possible, but it appears that Eight is very much alive", he announces and Adam whoops in celebration. "Great so now we understand the fourth dot in Florida, but what about the one in England?", Sarah says, her face much brighter after this new revelation and we fall silent. "There is only one Garde who I know of who had anything to do with England, but she's been dead nearly six years now", Adam says and we look hopeful, "Since Eight is still alive, can't we somehow assume that she could be alive too?", I ask and he shakes his head. "The Mogs took her body away", he says, looking strangely guilty as he continues, "they did that for all the Garde they killed and I'm sure Two was no exception. Whoever this mystery Garde is in England, we are just going to have to hope they can hold on a bit longer until we find the others".

We look down at the tablet again to see the dot in England now moving steadily westward and the dots in Florida are now covering ground at a rapid pace as well. "They're on a plane!", I exclaim pointing at the four dots and Dad looks carefully before nodding. "It appears so, but why would they be going West?", he asks and once again, we're stumped.

"Dulce is in the West, and Stonehenge is in the West of England, if I'm not wrong", John says and I nod, remembering my Geography class back in Paradise. "Remember how Eight said he could teleport around the world from a few locations? I think he mentioned that one of them is Stonehenge and another is somewhere in the New Mexico Desert, near Dulce. Maybe they somehow contacted this Garde in England, told them to get themselves to Stonehenge, and from New Mexico, they will teleport to meet him/her?", he asks formulating a theory as he goes along and I have to admit, it's a decent one, to say the least.

"Then let's go too", I say and everyone stares, "If we get a flight now, we could reach New Mexico at about the same time. It'll obviously be easier to catch up with them if were in the same state", I say and John closes his eyes, thinking before asking, "Malcolm, how far to the airport?". My Dad smiles as guns the accelerator and we take off down the road.

We reach the airport and are lucky enough to get tickets to Albuquerque, where the others are most likely headed. We grab the chests and tablet leaving the bag with ammo in the car. That'll be hard to explain to airport security. We reach the gates just as final call is being sounded and soon, we are airborne. Adam and I sit next to each other, our eyes glued to the tablet while John and Sarah are asleep in the seats in front of us. My Dad sits across the aisle and has his eyes closed, but I can tell he's not asleep. The Chimaera transformed into ants and now it on the tray in front of me, occasionally changing forms between different colorful insects when they're sure no one's looking.

I watch the dots slowly converge on New Mexico and find myself thinking about Six. How soon I'll be able to see her again, and how she'll react when she sees me. I miss her, I realize and continue concentrating on the dots, willing them to go faster. Nearly two hours later, we land at the airport and hop off the plane. Our flight landed minutes after theirs and since they don't know we're coming, we will have to hurry to catch them before they leave the airport. We rush to baggage claim to collect the Chests. John was really worried about putting them in check in, but when we see them coming down the conveyer, he breathes a sigh of relief and hands one to each of us- except Sarah -to carry. We rush outside and look around desperately, but we can't see them anywhere. "The car park!", John exclaims, "That's the first place they'll go".

We set off running and reach the parking lot just in time to see the other Garde approach a minivan. We run towards them, calling out their names but they seem to be talking among themselves and don't hear us. Finally, Marina turns around and catches sight of us running towards them, and she stares at us in shock, as if she can't believe we are actually here. Then a head with a mop of curly hair peeps out from the open door and looks around before his eyes land on us and his mouth falls open in shock. "Six! Nine! Look!", Eight shouts and they all jump out of the car and face us as we near them. Marina and Eight are still recovering from the shock, while Nine smirks as usual. Six on the other hand, runs forward and throws her arms around me. I hold her close and whisper a quick "Hey", before she pulls away and looks at us in wonder.

"How did you?", she asks, confused, and I laugh looking at her facial expression, which is incredibly cute. "The tablet", I explain and her eyes widen in realization as she gets it. Then we notice the others staring at us warily. I follow their gazes to find them fixed on Adam, who suddenly looks very uncomfortable. "Guys, this is Adam. He rescued me from Dulce", I say and their distrust fades to comprehension and then slowly, they smile and step towards. Nine walks forward, claps John on the back, and holds out a hand for me, and then Adam to shake. "Well its great to see you guys again", he says and I'm surprised at his greeting, but then he adds, "By your timing, I can only assume that you all couldn't bear a second more away from my charming character and so decided to come and see me".

Well nothing's changed on that end, I think to myself as Six tells Nine off for being so arrogant while Eight and Marina go around saying their hellos. Bernie Kosar and the other Chimaera climb out of our pockets and transform themselves into a pack of dogs, eliciting shouts of surprise from the Garde, as Adam and John quickly explain our side of the story. Once they're done and the others have had a chance to let it sink in, John finally asks, "So what happened to you guys? And how exactly is Eight alive even though I have a scar? And-", he tries to continue but Six cuts him off.

She tells us about the fight in the marshes, how Five stabbed Eight and how they escaped. She then turns to Eight, who tells us about his dream and his subsequent waking up. Once they finish, not a single one of out group isn't gaping in shock. "So what you're saying", John says, putting it together, "is that Five's a traitor and now this Garde, Number Two-". "Kiara", Eight interjects, "she prefers her loric name". "Kiara", John says correcting himself, "is Eight's twin sister? And she's teleporting here?". "Yup', Six answers and I take a chance to ask a question that has been preying on my mind ever since Eight mentioned telling Kiara about the loralite.

"Eight, by any chance did you mention the Loralite to Five?", I ask him and his face grows thoughtful for a second before replying, "I did mention it when I described my life story that day…", he says trailing off as he realizes what I'm hinting at and looks horrified. "If Five knows about the loralite, and now he's a traitor, it means that the Mogs know too", Marina says softly and Six adds, "And once they do it's not like they are going to leave it alone, not without defenses….". Suddenly, everyone's expression changes to mirror Eight's look of utter horror .

We all fall silent as Nine concludes, his voice strained and low, "And so, if all this is true, it means Kiara is going to teleport herself straight into a trap".

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**And if you thought last times cliffhanger was bad...**

**this time it just gets worse... :P **

**Please don't forget to review and tell me what you liked/didn't like about this chapter! Thanks a bunch for all your support so far!**

**And so until next time!**

**-thesecondgarde**


	10. Chapter 9

**Hey guys! **

**Thank you all for your reviews for my last chapter! And please take a look at my new story about Eight and Two, "No need to say goodbye". It's based on Eight's dream in chapter 7!**

**So here's chapter 9! (My 10th update!)**

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**CHAPTER 9**

I'M THROWN BACK INTO MY CELL AND THE DOOR IS SHUT WITH A LOUD BANG. I HEAR FOOTSTEPS SLOWLY FADING AND THE sliding door open and close, before I know for sure that I'm alone. I pull my knees to my chest, put my head down and sob. I've barely been here a week, and I'm already struggling to stay strong against the torture.

My days have become an endless cycle of eating, torture and fitful sleep. My thoughts are hazy, and my movements have become sluggish. The torture is getting to me, slowly taking over . The Mogs don't show me any mercy, even though I'm supposedly Setrakus' heir, but it's not like I ever expected them too.

It's always the same Mog who tortures me, and always in the same way. He starts by asking if I'm willing to cooperate, to which I refuse to answer, and then the cutting starts. He first goes after my arms, adding one slice every time I don't respond to his questions. Once my arms are in shreds, it's on to my lgs, and then sometimes, when he is really frustrated, my face. But all this is bearable compared to what comes next, the healing.

The Mogs apparently have no qualms against torturing me, but apparently my bleeding to death is a matter of great concern. I wondered how they had managed to get their hands on a healing stone until I realized that Five probably gave it to them. I haven't seen him again since our conversation on my first day here, and now I'm fully convinced that he's a traitor.

Normally I would be thankful that my wounds are being healed but in this case, I'd rather let them bleed out. The healing causes twice the amount of pain as the cuts do, and I'm forced to relive the torture all over again while the Mogs erase any signs of it from my body.

But through all of this, I force myself to hold back my tears. I won't give them the satisfaction of knowing they're hurting me, breaking me. I don't know how Six and Nine survived this for so long.

A flap on my door rattles and I crawl forwards, pulling the tray of food towards me. Torture always leaves me famished, and I'm about to dig in when I see a small piece of paper tucked below a bowl of watery soup. I pull it out and in the low lighting of my cell, I read what it says.

"One Mogs food is a loric's poison. Don't eat the soup". I tear my eyes away from the warning note and stare at my soup. It's clear with few vegetables floating in it, and is easily the most appetizing thing on the tray. My other options are two slices of bread and some cut fruit, none of which will satisfy my hunger.

I look back at the note, wondering whether to trust what it says or not. For some reason this doesn't seem like a trick to me, and so I decide to take the advice. I wolf down the bread and fruit, and pour out the contents of the soup bowl in the corner of my cell. It's barely enough to stop my stomach from growling, but I'm soon feeling more alert than ever.

I initially think it's because of the hunger but then another idea pops into my head. Sedatives. They have probably been drugging my food to make it harder for me to fight back. But why would they bother? I'm clearly outnumbered, and when I'm not being tortured I'm stuck in this legacy-proof cell.

Legacy proof, Five told me it was and I believed him, never bothering to try myself. But now, I wonder... I focus on my soup bowl and try to lift it using my telekinesis. At first, nothing happens and I'm worried that I was wrong, that Five was indeed telling the truth, when all at once, it begins to shakily rise a few inches above the ground. I gasp, and the bowl clatters down against the stone floor of my cell. I try again and sure enough, the bowl rises again. I smile for the first time since I've been held captive and realize that with this knowledge, I might actually stand a chance at escaping this hellhole.

I'm about to try opening the lock on my door when it swings open and two Mog soldiers stride in , followed by my least favorite person in the whole world, Ivanick. "Hello Ten, I hope you are enjoying your new accommodations", he says sneering at me, and I'm so angry, I can't bring myself to answer. I want to pick him up and throw him against the wall, maybe break a few of his bones, but I hold back. I need to regain my strength before I can try any of that, and a failed attempt would just make things harder for me. I can't let them know I've found out about the drugs.

Seeing my lack of response he smiles and says, "Well it appears that we have managed to teach you some manners. Great timing too, the beloved leader wishes to see you again", he says and motions for the Mogs to pull me out of my cell, but I stand up and walk out myself. Ivanick looks stunned for a second, as if he expected me to fight back but quickly regains his composure and motions for the Mogs to lead me out of the prison block.

He walks behind me, one hand on his blaster while the other fingers the edge of his shirt. I can tell I've scared him, or atleast made him nervous and a bit suspicious by my sudden display of obedience and I smile at the thought. "What are you smiling about?", he asks, jabbing his blaster into my back and I turn to face him. His hand is shaking slightly as my smile grows and I answer, "Nothing, I'm just excited to meet the leader", I say sweetly, trying to hold back my laughter at his expression of utter shock. He falls silent, blinks a few times and generally looks like he's been hit a little too hard on the head. I push his blaster out of the way and wave my hand in front of his face, teasing him and he snaps at me, "Stop that, you loric scum, know your place. Whatever you are trying to do with this act, I assure you, it is a fruitless endeavor . You cannot stand against the might of the Beloved leader". "Whoever said I wanted to stand against him?", I ask as he pushes me forward with his gun, and I can tell he cannot believe what he is hearing.

All this lying comes so easily to me, I'm suddenly worried that it might be the truth, but one thought of Ra's ugly face is all it takes to kill that idea. We reach the doors to the "throne room", and I'm led inside. "Ella, welcome", I hear Ra say and I have to use all my self control to stop a scowl forming on my face. Instead of running forward and attacking him like I did last time, I smile back and say, "Hi!", as enthusiastically as I can. Ra's face quickly turns confused, before he regains his composure and asks me, "Are you in a mood to cooperate today? Or must we have a repeat of last time?". "Oh, last time… Sorry 'bout that!", I say trying to sound cheery, "I really didn't mean to hit you…", I say trying to look as innocent as possible and I swear Ra cannot believe his eyes. His eyes almost bulge out of their sockets and it's so comical, I have to hold back a laugh.

"You there!", he calls out to Ivanick and he steps forward and bows deeply. "Get me Dr. Zakos", he commands and Ivanick rushes out of the room. Ra turns to me and motions to a chair near me. I take a seat and he looks even more surprised, if that is even possible. He stares at me until the doors open once more and a Mogadorian in a lab coat runs in. "You called for me?", he asks Ra and he nods, indicating me. Zakos looks at me for a few seconds before turning to Ra and asking, "She is the Garde?". Ra nods and continues, "It's rather strange, the last time she was rather… uncooperative but it now appears that she regrets her past actions", he says glancing at me and I nod.

"Well", he starts, speaking softly but I can hear him quite well with my enhanced hearing, "The sedatives we were giving her could have caused amnesia or confusion, resulting in a change in personality like the one you are describing", he says glancing at me and I smile sweetly at him, realizing I had guessed correctly about them drugging me. "Can you tell for sure?", Ra asks and suddenly I'm worried. If Zakos can't confirm it then Ra won't believe my act. I use my telepathy and try reading Zakos' mind. I hear his thoughts revolve around testing me, just to be sure and I'm really about to panic when I decide to try something out.

I focus on his thoughts and try to bend them, to change them, and it works, because in a matter of seconds, Zakos believes with full conviction that my personality has changed for good. "I'm sure", he says and I sigh in relief, but Ra doesn't seem convinced. "Your track record doesn't speak in your favor, Zakos", Ra says, "I want certainty".

I tense, if Ra does not trust Zakos, then how am I supposed to convince him? Damn this doctor and his flimsy reputation! "However, there is a very simple test to check if what you say is true or not". He motions with his hand and two Mog soldiers come in, dragging Five in with them. He has an eyepatch over one eye, just like in my vision, and has wounds all over his body. I'm surprised the Mogs haven't healed him already, and suddenly I'm doubting my conclusion that he's a traitor.

"Ella", Ra says, pulling me out of my thoughts and I look up at him. "I understand that you have had a change of heart, or should I say, an enlightening", he says and I nod as I reply, "I don't understand why I've been fighting you! It's clear the Mogadorians are far more advanced than the Loric, which leads me to believe that the expansion can only bring progress". I try to sound convincing but Ra's expression doesn't change as he asks, "But what about the Loric?".

The question catches me off guard and I struggle to keep my voice steady as I answer, "A species that fails to defend itself doesn't deserve to survive". Ra seems pleased by my answer and continues, "While I believe you, there are others who are skeptical-", he starts but I interject, "I was under the impression that your word is the law". He smiles at me and I can tell he is really impressed. "That is true, my dear, but one must always provide justification as an added measure, I hope you understand". I nod and he says, "All you must do is prove that you hqave no... sympathy, for lorics".

He waves a hand towards Five and I realize what he wants me to do. I look at Five, who I'm sure has understood Ra's task and I find him smiling confidently. He seems so sure that he isn't going to die, maybe because he believes I'm too scared to do it, or that he will be protected in the event that I do decide to go ahead with it.

His smile, his betrayal, they make me so angry, I don't hesitate when I pull a blaster from the hands of a nearby Mog, take aim and shoot him straight in the chest.

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**Well...what do you think? Leave me a review!**

**Until next time**

**-Thesecondgarde**


	11. Chapter 10

**Aaand I'm back!**

**Thank you all for your reviews for my last chapter! **

**This chapter is me being really generous, I'm explaining my last cliffhanger (well sorta) and giving you the long awaited Nine POV! So enjoy!**

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**CHAPTER 10**

IT'S SUDDENLY SO QUIET, IT FEELS UNNATURAL. EVERYONE IS STARING AT EACH OTHER IN SHOCK, AS IF THEY can't quite comprehend what we have just figured out, and I seem to be the only one who realizes that we're running out of time. "Well if you all are done gaping like goldfish, I suggest we get the hell out of here. This chick ain't gonna last long in that desert, especially if it's a trap", I say and everyone looks at me, their faces blank and I almost resist the urge to face palm.

Keyword here is almost.

Sweetheart is the first to recover and her eyes scan the parking lot, probably in search of a bigger car. We're gonna need one now that Johnny brought the whole party to us. "He's right", she says and I smirk, "Of course I am!". She elbows me in the gut and I pretend to be severely hurt. "There's another minivan up ahead", she continues, "Nine, you and I will drive. Take Marina, Eight, Sam and the chests with you. Sam, take the tablet and lead the way. Keep an eye on her to make sure we know when and where she teleports. John, Sarah, Malcolm and Adam you're with me", she finishes and I find myself nodding along with everyone else. Johnny , Sarah, Mog boy and Malcolm start towards the second minivan as Six pulls me aside.

"If this is a trap, things are going to get real messy", she says to me, "I don't know if Kiara can hold her own in a fight, so you're gonna have to watch out for her. OK?", she asks and I nod. "Six, what if it isn't her?", I ask as she starts towards the car and she turns around. "What do you mean?', she asks. "We have a scar on our ankle, and if she never died how did it get there? Things don't add up", I say and her expression turns grim as she responds, "I thought about that too, but right now we don't have time to second guess. If we don't get there in time, and she is who she says she is, we would have lost another ally". I frown, not thrilled with the answer but knowing that she's right. I think about the potential trap and suddenly I realize something.

"Hey Sweetheart!", I call out after Six and she turns around, clearly annoyed at her nickname. That will never get old. "What?", she snaps and I grin as I reply, "We're gonna need some guns, lots and lots of guns". She shakes her head at me and says, "I'll see what I can do", before running off to the minivan.

I climb into the driver's seat and pull on my seat belt Sandor never let me drive without one, and now it's kind of a habit. "Well Sammy, where to?", I ask as I pull out of the lot with Six and the others right behind us. "Eight said the loralite is a few miles away from Dulce, so heading towards the base would be the best option", he says and Eight nods beside him. "I can figure out it's approximate location once we're nearby, and plus we can always keep an eye out for her dot on the tablet", he says and I ask, "Where is she now?". "Still in England, moving West", Sam says and Eight glances quickly at the tablet before looking up. "We still have about an hour and a half, I assume, before she teleports", he says and I quickly estimate the distance between here and Dulce. "It'll take us two to reach the base at this rate. We're gonna have to speed things up if we wanna make it in time", I say as I prepare myself, "Hang on!".

With my warning given, I floor the accelerator and the minivan takes off at full speed. I glance in the rear-view mirror and see that Six has done the same, and turn my attention to the traffic ahead. I dodge and weave through the lanes of cars, and turn sharply around a few corners. "You know, Sandor's cars make this thing look like a snail", I say, turning back, only to see everyone gripping the seats or each other, eyes wide with fear.

Sissies, I think to myself as I turn back to the front and swerve around a pickup.

I hear a sigh of relief from the back and Marina yells, "Nine you're gonna get us killed!". I smile at her through the mirror as I reply, "Honey, if I honestly wanted to kill you, I would be going way faster, so sit back, relax and enjoy this while you can". Forty five minutes later, we near the base and Six signals for me to pull over. I drop our speed a little, and everyone, especially Marina heaves a sigh of relief. I shake my head at them as I pull into the shoulder of the road and wait for Six to do the same. She parks and jumps out of the drivers seat and walks towards the car. "I'm going to go get us some ammo", she says, indicating a few armed guards patrolling the access road to the base and I nod.

She turns invisible and a few minutes later, the guards are out cold on the side of the road and we have enough weapons for a small army. We drive as far as we can down the road and then switch to offroading down the sand dunes, which is far from easy in a rusty minivan. I'm navigating a rather difficult dune when Sam shouts out, "She stopped moving! I think she's going to teleport!". I slam on the brakes and turn back to look at the tablet and sure enough, the dot in England is stationary. "We should be close to the loralite now", Eight says, "Lets ditch the cars here and walk". We grab the chests and step out into the sweltering heat. Six's car stops behind ours and the others get out,immediately complaining about how hot it is. "It's a desert! What did you expect? Air conditioning?", I yell and they trudge up after us, grumbling.

I keep my eyes peeled for any signs of Mogs or some kind of trap, but I see nothing. "She disappeared!", Sam shouts and we all turn around to face him. He holds up the tablet and the dot in England is gone. "Great, so now we know the teleporting part works. Let's just hope she ends up here and not anywhere else", Eight says and I whip around. "What do you mean by anywhere else? Don't tell me we are standing in the middle of this frikkin' hot desert for nothing!", I shout and he holds up his arms as if to pacify me. "Well teleporting isn't exactly a perfect science. She could end up at any of the other locations around the world, but I've already told her what to do in case she does, so she should be fine".

I'm about to blow up again when Sam gives another shout. "She's here!", he says, face lighting up, "And not very far away. Just over that sand dune up ahead if I'm not wrong. Eight quickly looks at the map before saying, "I'm going to teleport ahead and get her. She's probably exhausted after the jump". He finishes and within a second is standing at the top of the dune, looking at the valley below. His expression turns confused as he calls out, "Kiara?", and we hear someone shout back in reply, their words muffled by the wind. We stumble up the dune and reach him, just as he teleports down.

He appears at the base of the dune next to a tall girl with long dark hair, and pulls her into a hug which she returns. We slide down the dune and steady ourselves as they pull away, and get our first look at the newcomer. She bears a general resemblance to Eight, having the same eyes and skin tone, but it's clear that there's one thing Eight forgot to mention.

She's incredibly beautiful.

She smiles at us and I swear I can't breathe. Nine! Get a grip! I tell myself as Eight floats over her Chest and Backpack that lie in the sand nearby. "Guys, I'd like to introduce my sister, Number Two, or as she prefers, Kiara", he says as he grabs her hand and pulls her towards us. She opens her mouth, about to say something and is suddenly staring down the barrel of a sub-machine gun.

Mog boy stands in front of her, his expression cold as he studies her and cocks the gun. He motions for Eight to back away and he does, a stunned expression on his face as he watches the scene unfold before him. "Adamus", Kiara says, her expression calm and her tone a mix of surprise and sarcasm as she continues, "I wish I could say it's lovely to see you again, but then I'd be lying". "Who are you?", he asks, his gun still pointed between her eyes.

"I believe my brother already introduced me, but it appears you were not listening, so I'll say it again", she says calmly and I have to admire her self control. If I were her, Mog boy would be a pile of ash on the floor.

"My name is Kiara. I am also called Number Two, and you know me as Maggie Hoyle", she says but Adam sneers. "I know Maggie Hoyle, and you're definitely not her", he says and shakes his gun. "Are you willing to bet on that?", she asks and Adam looks taken aback as she pulls her dark hair out of it's braid and shakes her hair free. She closes her eyes and slowly, her features melt and reform.

Her hair curls wildly and turns a shade of reddish-brown, her skin pales and her features are now remarkably mousey ."Recognize me now?", she asks, a hand on her hip and Adam gapes in shock, but quickly recovers. "Nice trick, but it's not enough to convince me", he says and she looks thoughtful for a moment before replying, "I understand your distrust, especially in the light of what has happened with Five. I mean, Winston trusted Julia and look how that turned out".

Adam lowers his gun and says softly, "1984, George Orwell. I can't believe it… how?", he asks and I'm clueless as to what has just happened. She smiles at him and steps forward as if to give him a hug, and in one deft motion, has his gun pointed straight at him. "Now we have confirmed my identity", she says, her expression cold and dangerous, "Let's tell them about who you really are, Adamus".

"Kiara, he's with us. He's saved our lives, he's helped us!", Eight says but that only provokes her. "He's helped you?", she asks almost laughing, "He helped you, just like he helped me", she shakes her head, changing back to herself and I take the chance to ask, "You know each other?". She answers without looking away from Adam, "You could say that, but I assumed Adamus would have told you that already", she says and I'm shocked. What in the world is she talking about?

"Crafty Adamus", she says teasing him, shaking the gun in his face and I can see Mog boy's composure slipping, his expression changing to one of guilt. "Crafty Adamus, wasn't that what he said, your friend, the one who slit my throat while you watched", she says and Adam hangs his head. I look around and everyone is staring at Adam in shock, especially Sam and Malcolm.

"You should have just shot me", she says and I look at her, "You had the gun, and it would have saved me the pain of bleeding out on the floor". "Adam? What is she talking about", Sam asks slowly and Adam shakes his head slowly, not meeting her eyes. "Well Adam, tell them!", she commands and when he shakes his head again she pokes him with the gun and says, "I'm not afraid to shoot you Adam, though I would prefer not to. I don't like taking down people who don't have a fighting chance".

He flinches at her last line and starts to speak slowly. "When I was around thirteen, I was selected to be part of an experiment. Number One had just been…. killed", he says and gulps back, a sob? "And I was supposed to examine her memories, to glean whatever information I could about the Garde and Lorien and then report. But during the process, I met One, and soon realized that fighting the Garde was not what I wanted to do. You guys reminded me of myself, how you never seemed to fit in, how you always felt alone. I was put into a coma, and I woke up three years later, just a few short weeks before they found you", he says, slowly raising his gaze to meet Kiara's, which has lost it's harshness and is now curious.

"They had been tracking your Cêpan for months, trying to pinpoint your location. They got close to catching you in the Scottish Highlands, but you escaped and then they finally located you in London", he says and at the mention of her Cêpan, Kiara lowers the gun and swallows, a few tears running down her cheeks. I resist the urge to walk up to and wipe them away, and Adam continues, " I was the son of an important General, and I was supposed to come along to watch. The plan was to trail your Cêpan, and have him lead us to you, and then….", he trails off but we all get the idea. They were supposed to be killed. Kiara nods at him and he continues, looking warily at her. "But he was onto us before we knew what was happening", he says and she smiles, "Conrad was the smartest person I've ever known. He was on that bus in an attempt to lead you away from me actually", she says softly and Adam looks even more guilty.

"He fought bravely, we sustained losses I never thought possible at the hands of one person, but he was outnumbered", he says and Kiara nods, tears running down her cheeks. "And then I saw the blog post", he says and she looks up, alert. "It was a stupid idea, and all it took was a few keystrokes for me to find your location", she shakes her head. "I was an idiot, too afraid of being alone. I couldn't think straight" she says and he shakes his head, "In your position, I would have probably done something even dumber". She smiles sadly and he continues, "And so I came to find you, encouraged by One to do whatever it took to get you out of there alive. To say I tried my best would be a lie. I was too afraid to stand up against Ivan, to fight them off, or to even throw you the gun, and for that -though I know it will never make up for what happened- I'm sorry", he says and Kiara looks at him, her expression softening as she drops the gun.

"It's alright, and I'm sorry too", she says, wiping away her tears and smiling sadly. She steps forward and gives him a hug, which he returns, and I can't help but feel a little jealous. She pulls away and turns to us, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry about that", she says, "I had to be sure…".

"Don't worry about it", Johnny says stepping forward with his hand outstretched, "Any of us would have done the same in your position. I'm Four, but I go by John, it's nice to meet you Kiara". She smiles and shakes his hand, looking expectantly at the rest of us. Marina steps forward and introduces herself, followed by Six. Sam, Malcolm and Sarah go next, and Kiara treats them no different from any of us, even though I'm sure she has realized they're human.

And then it's my turn. I step forward and find myself getting nervous. She's just another girl, Nine! I tell myself but it doesn't seem to help. "I -um- I'm Nine", I manage and she smiles at me. I smile back and notice Johnny, Eight and Six smirking at my expression and I glare at them.

"Sorry to kill the mood", Adam says and we turn to him, "but I think it's about time you told us how exactly you're… um…", he trails off and Kiara asks, 'Alive?", and he nods. She gives a small laugh and asks, "It's kind of a long story, are you sure you-", she starts to say but I shush her loudly, as I hear a faint noise from somewhere above us.

"Nine? Is something wrong?", she asks and I shush her again as the noise gets louder, turning into a slight whistle. "Can't you hear it?", I ask as I stare into the sky, looking for the source, and that's when I see it. At first it's a small speck, but as it approaches I can clearly make out what it is. The pointed end, the flaming tail.

I barely have enough time to shout, "Look out!", before it lands a few meters away from us, and the resultant explosion blows us off our feet.

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**Is Nine too OOC ? And my next chapter will be the big reveal, my theory on how Two survives and yet, why the others still have a scar. **

**Please Review! The more reviews I get, the more the encouragement for me to post CH 11!**

**Can I get 50 this time? Let's see...**

**So until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	12. Chapter 11

**Hello again!**

**50 reviews! Thank you all so much! I'm so thrilled right now XD**

**So here's chapter 11!**

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**CHAPTER 11**

I'M THROWN BACKWARDS BY THE FORCE OF THE EXPLOSION, AND LAND HARD ON MY BACK. I TRY MOVING AND ONCE I'M CONVINCED that nothings broken, I sit up and try to get a lock on the others. I squint through the flying sand and spot Nine to my right, slowly getting to his feet.

"Nine!", I shout and he turns to my general direction and calls out, "Six? Are you OK?". "I'm fine!", I shout back as I look through the clearing haze and see the others slowly recovering. "Where's Kiara?", I shout and he looks around, panicking when she's nowhere to be seen.

"I'm here!", we hear her say from somewhere behind us and find her pulling herself into a sitting position. Nine rushes to her side and asks if she's hurt, to which she shakes her head. He helps her up and we look around at the huge crater formed around us.

"The loralite!", Kiara shouts as she runs to the center and examines the shattered blue crystal. Eight appears behind her and they both look at each other, worried and upset before Kiara says, "We need to get out of here. My teleportation hasn't come back yet, so that's unfortunately not an option".

I open my mouth to respond when Marina comes running towards us, followed by everyone else. "No one's been severely hurt, but John says we need to leave, right now". I nod and look behind her at John, who is collecting the Chests using his telekinesis.

We start towards them when Nine suddenly stops walking and turns around, his eyes narrowing.

"Mogs", he says and not a second later, we see them running down the slopes of the crater, blasters at the ready. "Guys! Look out!", I shout and everyone slowly backs into a circle around our chests. "We're gonna have to fight our way out. Six and I will try to clear a path back to the cars, everyone else, keep them busy". We grunt our agreement and I glance quickly at Nine, who catches my eye and nods.

He needs to keep an eye on Kiara, if she reacts the same way Five did in Arkansas, then she doesn't stand a chance.

I barely have enough time to summon up a storm before the firing starts. I quickly turn myself invisible and grab a blaster from a nearby Mog. I shoot down at least two dozen more before I look around to check on everyone else.

Eight is teleporting around as a giant lion while Marina backs him up with a storm of icicles. John has put himself on fire and is currently defending our chests along with Sarah, Sam and Malcolm, who are all holding Mog blasters. Adam stands nearby, generating small earthquakes that bury the approaching Mogs neck deep in the sand as the Chimaera swoop down from above, creating chaos among the Mog ranks. I then turn to see Nine guarding Kiara as she rummages through her chest and pulls out a metal cylinder.

"Nine, I got it!", she yells and he slowly walks back to stand next to her as I run to join them. Kiara snaps her wrist and the cylinder glows blue, slowly expanding until it's a five foot long, double bladed staff.

The blades are curved in opposite directions, and are joined by a grip only about two hands long.

All in all, it looks deadly.

She smiles at us before adjusting her weapon and running into battle. We follow her, preparing to provide back up in the event she needs it soon becomes clear that she's an excellent fighter.

She slices her way through the Mogs, the length of her staff providing great reach and soon the air is filled with ash. Her movements are fluid, but I can tell that she's tiring out fast. "Guys this way!", I shout and everyone rushes over, John levitating the chests behind him. Together, we manage to clear a path out of the crater and head for the cars, which are thankfully untouched.

"Get in!", I shout and everyone quickly finds a seat as Nine and I get rid of any Mogs who get to close before jumping into the driver's seats. We put the cars in gear and set off down the dunes at full speed, keeping an eye out for anything that might be following us. Only once we get off the access road and are racing down the highway can I breathe a sigh of relief, turning back at the others. Sam, Marina, Eight and Malcolm stare back at me, and I ask, "Is everyone OK?". I hear a chorus of yeses and turn my attention back to the road.

Forty five minutes later, I pull into a parking lot near a fast food restaurant and Nine follows my lead, parking a few spots down. I climb out of my seat and watch as John, Sarah, Kiara and Adam get out, clutching the chests. The Chimaera land a few feet away and turn into a pack of dogs before running towards us. I do a quick headcount and once I make sure everyone's there, I turn to John to decide our plan from here on out.

"OK guys, that was really close. I think we've lost them for now, but the longer we stay here, the easier it is for them to catch up so I suggest that we keep moving-", he starts but Nine interrupts. "Are you crazy? We're all half dead on our feet and you want to keep moving?", he says and John replies, "If you wanna sleep, Nine, Malcolm or Sarah can drive in your place". "It's not for me. It's for her!", he says pointing to Kiara who raises her eyebrows at him and asks, "Me? I'm fine! What are you saying?". "You're fine, and that's why you nearly passed out twice during the drive here", he replies and she says indignantly, "I did not!", but he raises his eyebrows at her and she gives in.

"Ok fine! I'm tired, but that's no excuse-", she starts but I decide to close up this matter. "Actually Kiara, it is. Again, as much as I hate to admit it, Nine's got a point. I saw a sign for a motel a few miles back, so it should be around here somewhere", I say and pause, waiting to see if anyone wants to object. No one does and so I continue, "John, take the boys and go check out the motel. The girls and I will grab some dinner and meet you there in about half an hour".

We break into our groups and the boys head off down the road towards the motel with our chests and bags while the girls stay back. "So what now?", Sarah asks and I reply, "We grab something to eat", as I start towards the restaurant. "Hold on", Marina says and I turn around, "We need to get Kiara some supplies, especially clothes", she says, looking at Kiara. "That would be really great", she says looking gratefully at Marina before adding, "These clothes aren't even mine!".

Twenty minutes later, we head towards the motel clutching enough food to feed an army and a duffel bag filled with Kiara's stuff. Marina and Sarah helped her with the shopping, as I was far from interested in checking out racks of clothing. We find it easily enough and climb to the first floor, where John and Eight stand in the corridor.

"Where were you guys? I thought half an hour was just an exaggeration!", Eight says slinging his arms around Marina and Kiara. "We went shopping", Marina says and Kiara holds up her duffel bag. "Where's the food?", John asks and we hand him the bags. "Save some for us!", Sarah calls out as we head for our rooms, and he laughs. I'm sharing with Sarah and she agrees to letting me take a shower first. I wash off the sand and ash, and step out feeling fresh. I pull on a pair of shorts and a tee shirt and leave the bathroom as Sarah brushes past me on her way in.

I'm running my fingers through my hair, considering dyeing it again when I hear someone knock on the door. "Come in!", I say and Kiara steps inside. She's in a tank top and yoga pants, her preferred pajamas and is shaking out her wet hair. "Hey Six", she says and I motion for her to sit down. "I wanted to thank you for what you've done for me today, mostly for agreeing to come shopping. I can tell you hate it", she says and I smile, "Don't mention it. It wasn't all that bad, I should recover with a couple of years of therapy and medication", I say somberly, a pained expression on my face. She laughs and it's so contagious, I find myself joining her and soon we're both in splits.

Sarah steps out of the bathroom and stares at us, shaking her head and laughing slightly as she puts her stuff away. We slowly recover and sit up as Marina walks in and tells us to get up so we can get some food before the boys eat it all. We walk down the corridor and into the boys room, where everyone has gathered to eat.

Eight pulls Marina over to him as she enters and hands her a burger. Sarah goes to sit by John and I walk over to Sam, who has saved me a seat. As I take my first bite, I notice Nine staring at Kiara out of the corner of his eye, and nudge Sam, who chuckles when he gets it.

"Do you think that's ever going to happen?", he asks me as he continues to watch as Nine's eyes follow her as she goes to sit by her brother. "If she has any sense, no", I say and Sam laughs, "Well Nine's not all that bad and plus, he really likes her". I shake my head and continue eating, smirking at the thought of Nine crushing on Kiara.

We eat until all the food's gone, and then sit around and stare at each other until Malcolm decides to break the silence. "I know you're probably very tired Kiara, and I understand if you're not up to explaining now, but I'm sure we'd all really love to hear your story, with the exception of Eight, who I believe has already heard it before", he says and Eight adds, "I honestly don't mind listening again, so Kia, what do you say?".

"Well I'd love to, but know that I may not have answers to all your questions, since I really don't understand how much of this stuff works myself", she says and we all sit up, interested. "I suppose I should start at the beginning", she says and takes a deep breath before starting, " Once we landed on Earth, Conrad and I headed to Europe. We moved about quite a bit, never staying anywhere for more than a few months, which was really needed since we attracted too much attention. You see, Conrad and I looked nothing alike, and it was impossible for me to pass off as his daughter, so we settled on the story that I was adopted. Unfortunately, that only made it worse with people asking questions about why he would choose to adopt and stuff, making it harder for me to stay hidden. And then there was the teasing. I was only about 9 or so then, and the local girls would always make fun of me and though I knew I should take no notice of it, it still hurt and I found myself praying to look different. Wherever we went, Conrad never stopped training me, insisting that I work my hardest and earn my breaks. Since I was, and am Number Two, I had to be ready in case anything happened to One and I think it must have been a combination of training and desperate prayers that brought my first legacy earlier than usual. I was around 10 at the time, and we had just moved to Ireland. I had convinced Conrad to buy me a wig and some make up, and was staring in the mirror, trying to imagine myself with red hair and fair skin when suddenly, I wasn't imagining anymore".

"Your ability to change your appearance", John says and she nods, "Conrad was thrilled when I showed him. But it was short lived, for just about a week later, I got my first scar and we relocated to the Scottish Highlands immediately afterwards. It was easier for me to fit in, now I could change how I looked, but Conrad was done staying in cities and towns. He wanted somewhere isolated, where he could train me without worrying about my safety. But now I was alone, with no one my age to talk to or play with, and again, Lorien came to my rescue, giving me my second legacy".

"Which is?", I ask as she pauses and she points to the doorway, where I see her standing against the door frame. I look back to see her still sitting down, and suddenly it makes sense. "You can clone yourself?", Nine asks in disbelief and both Kiaras nod as they laugh at his shocked expression. The real one snaps her fingers and the clone disappears as she continues, "It was an awesome legacy, but it had it's limitations. My clones couldn't use legacies, but could retain whatever appearance I held while I cloned myself. Everything was fine for a few months and then one night, Conrad spotted a Mog scout near our cottage. He went out and killed him, but before we could move, we were attacked by what then seemed to be half their army. We somehow managed to get away and hide in London, but Conrad was sure they were still following us". "They were", Adam says and she nods, "I know that for sure now. He wanted to lead them off our trail, and decided he was going to create a diversion while I got myself to the airport, where he would meet me and we both would fly to South America. That was the day it happened. I remember watching his bus blow up on TV and panicking. I was so afraid, I didn't and couldn't think about what I was doing when I wrote that blog post. Did any of you see it?", she asks and I nod.

"We replied, and the Mogs found us. It's what led to my capture, and Katrina's death...", I say softly and she looks like she's about to cry. "Six, I'm so terribly sorry. After I posted it I realized how stupid I had been and prayed that no one would respond, I'm so so sorry!", she says and I look up at her, "It's alright. I can understand how you must have felt. It was stupid of us to have replied anyhow, so it's really not your fault". She looks like she wants to say something more but I look at her sharply and she continues, "I knew they would be coming for me then, and I had to think of a way to escape. If the Mogs came to the apartment and found me missing, they would practically lock down the city, making it impossible for me to leave. And so my escape depended on my ability to stay put. I finally came up with a plan and was about to start on it, when you arrived, Adam", she says looking at him and he nods. " Your speech outside the door gave me the time to work. You see, I never really died then, my clone did", she says and Marina asks, "You cloned yourself?".

"It was the only way it would work. I changed my appearance and cloned myself, and Maggie Hoyle was born. She was supposed to be a distraction, giving me time to get to the airport and get on a flight. But you see, there was another problem with my legacy. I had to be near my clones to make them disappear, and so I was forced to hide on the fire escape, with my chest and backpack while you were in the appartement. Maggie was supposed to wait for a group of soldiers to enter and let them chase her down the fire escape. We were both supposed to run, and rendezvous near the airport after losing them, which would have given us, or me some time before they could implement the lockdown. But then everything started to go wrong. The Mogs sent a scout team into the back alleyway to guard the fire escape, and they spotted me. I managed to fight them off, making sure they didn't have a chance to call for backup, but by the time I had finished with them, I was hurt and it was too late. Maggie was already trapped, and if she suddenly disappeared I would be caught for sure. I couldn't go in and save her, I was injured and outnumbered. So I did the only thing I could do, I ran. I figured that since it wasn't actually me, but a clone, even if anything were to happen -though I was sure she wouldn't have survived- the charm would still hold, protecting Three and everyone else. But I was wrong. I barely made it four blocks away before I felt like someone was choking me, and felt a scar burn into my ankle. I knew what had happened, and fought to keep running but I couldn't keep my eyes open, and passed out. Luckily for me, I chose to do so on the front steps of a hospital, which took me in. I remained comatose for six years, and woke up two days ago, just before I got Eight's scar, and now I'm here", she says and we stare at her in shock. It's unbelievable, and very confusing, but in a way, it makes sense. It explains the scar, and how she died, but has four scars like the rest of us, and I believe her.

"Woah", Nine says softly, breaking the silence and suddenly we're all clapping for her. She stares at us, confused by our reaction and Eight stands holding up his soda and says, "To Conrad and Maggie, without whom I would have never seen my sister again".

We raise our glasses and toast, not knowing whether to cry or smile, and it's a bittersweet ending to a tiring day.

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**And tadaa!**

**It's not a perfect theory... I think it makes sense though... what about you? **

**There's no cliffhanger... but i'll make up for that soon... dont worry :P**

**Tell me what you think, PM me if you have any questions**

**Don't forget to review! I'll update once I cross 55!**

**Also, check out my other story, no need to say goodbye, a series of one shots about Eight and Kiara! **

**Until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	13. Chapter 12

**I'm back!**

**I said I wasn't updating until I reached 55 reviews, but then I checked my stats... 53 reviews, over 1900 views and 10 favorites, not to mention 11 followers. This is insane!**

**THANK YOU ALL SOOO MUCH !**

**So here's chapter 12, and as per Posk123's request, it's all Navrina (I hope it's not too cheesy :P )**

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**CHAPTER 12**

I ROLL OVER IN BED AND STARE AT THE WALL, MY NIGHT VISION ALLOWING ME TO SEE THE FADED PICTURE HUNG ON IT CLEARLY, EVEN THOUGH IT'S DARK INSIDE THE ROOM. I hear Kiara sigh in her sleep from the other side of the room and turn to look at her. She's curled up on her side, and looks easily three years younger asleep.

She was completely exhausted after returning from dinner, and fell asleep the second she closed her eyes. I, on the other hand, am finding it really tough to drift off, and so am lying here, praying for sleep. I did get a few hours on the plane, and thanks to Eight, I slept quite peacefully. Eight. I wonder if he's asleep now. He did doze off on the plane, and seemed quite awake earlier, so maybe he's awake too. I throw the covers off and tiptoe to the door, careful not to wake Kia. She told me she was a heavy sleeper, and that I shouldn't worry about waking her, but all the same, I would feel horrible if I did.

Even though I've only known her a few hours, I can connect with her more than I can with Six or Sarah, probably because she is like me, serious and over thinking. The exact opposite of Eight. It's funny they're siblings and have nothing in common except a legacy and their general looks. I turn the doorknob, pull the door open and have to hold back a squeal when I see a tall figure silhouetted against the moonlight.

It takes me a second to recognize Eight and when I do, I throw my arms around him and he pulls me into a hug. "Hello Mar", he says softly and I give him a squeeze. "Hey you", I say looking up at him and he smiles, "What are you doing up?". "Couldn't sleep", he says and I nod, "Same here. I got a nap on the plane". "Well so did I, but that's not why", he says and I raise an eyebrow. "I couldn't sleep 'coz I couldn't stop thinking about you", he says with a cheesy smile and I laugh. "Well now I'm here, feeling sleepy yet?", I tease and he shakes his head, "Not a chance". He takes my hand and we teleport to the roof, where he has set up a blanket and a couple of pillows. "Either you couldn't bear Nine's snoring, or someone has been planning something", I say as I sit down beside him and he pulls me into his arms. He smiles against my hair and I reach up to lightly kiss his cheek.

He smiles and kisses me, pulling me closer and it doesn't take long before we're making out. His hands are wrapped tightly around my waist and mine are lost in his messy curls. It's perfect, and I really hate having to pull away, even though I really have to breathe. We sit there in a comfortable silence for a few minutes while we catch our breath, and then Eight says, "Mar, I'm sorry". "What are you sorry for? You haven't done anything wrong", I tell him and he shakes his head. "The letter", he says and I understand, "I wish I could have told you in person". "You still can", I tell him and his face lights up.

He looks into my eyes and says softly, "Marina, you are the most beautiful girl I have ever had the fortune to meet. You are my everything, and I now know that not telling you that was one of the biggest mistakes I have ever made. I love you, and I promise that I will never, in a thousand years, leave your side again". His last few words bring tears to my eyes as I shakily whisper back, "I love you too". He pulls me close against him and holds me as I sob against his chest. We both know we couldn't evade this topic forever, and I'm glad I can finally discuss it with him. "Marina?", Eight asks softly and I look up at him. His eyes are filled with worry and concern and I cup his cheek as I say, "I really missed you. Even though it was barely a day, it felt like forever that you were gone. There was nothing I wanted more than to have you back, and I couldn't go on…..". My voice starts to break on the last sentence and he gently strokes my hair, calming me down as he says, "Marina, I've always known you were strong and brave, but until now, I never could fully appreciated it. In your position, I wouldn't have lasted more than a few hours, and I can't explain what I could give to take your pain away". I pull him down and kiss him again. It's slower this time, not filled with the same passion as before, but instead, with love.

It gives me hope, and when he pulls away briefly to ask me to be his girlfriend, I really can't refuse. "Eight?", I say when we're done and he looks at me, "I'm so happy you're back". He smiles and says, "Well I'm happy to be back too, so now we've figured that out, let's talk about something else". "Kiara", I say without thinking and he looks at me strangely, "I mean, she's your long lost sister…It must have been quite a shock once you found out". "Not really, I mean, once we noticed we looked alike, it wasn't so unbelievable", he says and I say, "Well, I like her. She's easy to talk to and we get along well". He smiles and replies, "Well she likes you too, she told me just after she met you, and kinda guessed that we were together". "Are we that obvious?", I ask, surprised that she could pick it up that quickly and he shrugs, "I dunno really, but how does it matter? In fact, given the choice I would love to show off about how I'm dating the most beautiful girl in the universe". I shake my head at his typically cheesy line, but can't stop a small grin from forming on my lips.

We lie down on the covers in each others arms and stare at the stars, occasionally pointing out constellations. "Nine likes her", Eight says suddenly and it takes me a second to realise he's talking about Kiara. "So?", I ask, surprised by the harshness of his voice and he continues, "Well, I'm not too happy about that". "Of course you're not, you're playing protective brother", I say teasing him but he doesn't react. "Hey, she's smart, and I'm pretty sure that if Nine really does like her, then he's not about to break her heart. But if you want, I can talk to her about it", I offer and he nods, "Bring it up, will you? I'm sorry we're spending time talking about her now, but I really need to tell someone and you are the only one who seems to get it", he says and I smile at him. "It's ok. I'm just as worried about her as you are. I know how it feels to be out of place and the new kid, and I really want to help too", I say and it's the truth. He smiles and I let out a yawn. "Well it appears someone is finally sleepy", he says and I nod, blinking my eyes. He pulls me into his arms and a few minutes later I'm asleep, feeling safe and content with him nearby.

We sleep for about three hours before we are woken up by a piercing scream from below us. We jump to our feet and Eight teleports us back to my room, from where we heard the noise and we find everyone inside, standing around Kiara's bed.

She's sitting up against the pillows and her whole body is trembling. Tears run down her face and she grips the sheets tightly, trying to calm herself. Nine sits beside her, slowly rubbing her back and comforting her. There's genuine concern in his eyes and I realize Eight was right.

He does have feelings for her.

I sit on her other side and soon we manage to calm her down enough to get her to speak. "It was a nightmare", she says shakily and I look up at John, who nods. If it's anything like what Ella suffered from, then it could be a serious problem. "Do you want to tell us about it?", Nine asks her softly and she nods, "I don't understand. The people in it, I have never seen them before. How can I dream about someone I've never seen before?".

"Maybe it wasn't a dream, maybe it was a vision", Eight says and she looks confused. "A vision? How does that work?", she asks and Eight explains how sometimes, he gets dreams and visions warning him about the future, or about things going on in the present. "This was definitely going on sometime now", she says and I ask her, "What did you see?".

"Three people, one was a Mog", she says and Adam asks, "Can you describe him?".

"Bigger than usual, and he had a purple scar on his neck. Who is he?", she says and we take a deep breath. "That's Setrakus Ra", Nine tells her, "The Mog leader. Who were the other two people?", he asks and she answers, "A boy and a girl. The boy was hurt badly, bleeding from wounds all over his body and it looked like someone had taken out his eye".

I gasp, "Five", I say and she looks up.

"As in Number Five? The guy who killed you?", she asks Eight and he nods, "I thought he worked for the Mogs, then why would they….?", she trails off Six asks, "Why would they what?".

"Kill him", she replies and we stare in shock as she explains, "The girl in my dream was about twelve and had auburn hair. She was talking to the Mog, and he told her to prove she had no sympathy for lorics. They pulled Five in and she grabbed a blaster and shot him, it was all so sudden…". She's in shock, and so am I. It can't be her, she would never do something like that, I tell myself, but it's no use.

I have to make sure.

"Kiara, did they call her by name?", I ask and she nods slowly. My heart sinks with her next sentence.

"Ella, he called her Ella".

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**Not really a cliffhanger! :(**

**So tell me what you think! Please review! It will encourage me to update faster! **

**Awesome twists and new information and theories coming up soon!**

**What else do you want to see next?**

**So until then!**

**-thesecondgarde**


	14. Chapter 13

**Hello Everyone! I'm back!**

**So before I get on with my chapter, I just wanted to say a few thank yous to five people who have been reviewing this story consistently, giving me great suggestions, encouragement, and something to smile about! **

**I love all my reviewers for taking the time to write to me, but these five have stuck around from the beginning, so I really have to give them a special mention. **

**So I'd especially like to thank Tom, Mysteryfanaticno1, Posk123, scone104 and PD106 for their reviews and support up till now. You guys have kept me going! Thanks!**

**Oh and Tom, I really don't mind long reviews... write how much ever you like :P**

**So now onto chapter 13**

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**CHAPTER 13**

"KIARA, ARE YOU SURE HE SAID ELLA?", I ASK AS EVERYONE AROUND ME STARES AT HER IN SHOCK. "I'M POSITIVE", SHE says and I suddenly find it difficult to stay on my feet when it hits me. My dream, it's coming true. I sink down to sit on the corner of the bed as I realize that what I saw was probably not a dream, but a vision. A vision of the future, a future where the Mogadorians win. Where the last of the Loric resistance is wiped out, where we all die.

"Guys, you're scaring me. What's going on?", Kiara asks and I swallow as I look up to see her previous fear replaced by confusion as she studies our reactions. Nine has pulled away from her and is staring at the wall, his face expressionless. Six stares at her shoes, pulling at the edge of her shirt while Marina holds on tightly to Eight as she composes herself. Sam and Malcolm look worried while Adam stares at us, looking just as confused as Kiara. Sarah gives my hand a reassuring squeeze and I look up.

She looks concerned as if she expects me to say something, and I take it as my cue to explain. I tell her about how Marina met Ella at the orphanage, and how we discovered she was not actually Number Ten but the great granddaughter of the Tenth Elder of Lorien. I talk about her legacies and her strange power in Dulce which effectively rendered Ra's power to take away our legacies useless. I explain about her dream in Chicago, and how I ended up in it after I tried to wake her up. I then describe my dream, and her confusion turns to shock as I narrate how Ella is Setrakus' heir.

"No way", she says as I finish, "Setrakus is a Mog, why would he want a Loric heir?". "Maybe he's not what we think he is…", Six says in a low voice and we turn to look at her. "Kia has a point, but think about it this way. Ella's great grandfather was the Tenth Elder, and she was supposed to take his place…..but she's Ra's heir….", she trails off and I get what she's implying.

"You're saying that asshole is one of us? A Loric?", Nine explodes and Kiara lays a hand on his shoulder, pushing him back down to his seat. "Nine, sit down. Six has a point", she says sharply and he yells at her, "Six has a point? It's the most far fetched thing of all! Why the hell would the Mogs want a Loric ruling them? Ever thought of that?".

His tone is harsh, but Kiara is unfazed as she replies, "I have and you're right, it does seem far fetched. But from what John described about Dulce….", she says looking unsure whether or not to continue and he looks at her, willing her to continue. "He talked about Ra being able to render your legacies useless, and I couldn't help but notice that it sounds an awful lot like some kind of legacy", she says and Eight asks, "So you're saying that what he did back there was because he had a legacy that blocked all our powers?". "Blocked, maybe not, but it sounds more like he was immune to them. I'm thinking more along the lines of an anti-legacy legacy, if that makes any sense", she says and I can't help but admit that it's a good theory.

"But that doesn't explain how the Mogs accept him as a leader", Sam says and she nods, "I know, but if we were to assume that he's loric, for all you know he could have some type of legacy that helped him gain their trust or trick them", she replies and there's a moment of silence before Marina says, "But John saw Five alive in his dream, or vision. That means it's not possible for it to be true now that he's dead, right?". "Nope. We don't have scars on our ankles, which means Five isn't dead. And I'm pretty sure it wasn't a vision, it seemed like I was there, physically. The thing is, I never really saw Five get shot. I saw her pull the trigger, and the shot leave the gun but I never saw it hit him. For all we know he could have somehow dodged it, though it seems quite unlikely", she finishes and I shake my head.

"We can't sit around over-analyzing this", I say and everyone stares at me. "Worrying isn't going to change anything. For all we know, Kiara's dream could have been planted in her mind for a reason, to scare her and try to convince her to stop fighting. Like what he tried to do to Eight and me", I say and Nine looks annoyed. "So now you're saying that she's Pittacus too? Johnny your head's screwed up. Setting yourself on fire so often seems to have burned out half your brain cells. Pittacus is a dude and Kiara's a chick! How in the world can she be Pittacus?", he says and she raises her eyebrows at him, "A chick?", she asks incredulously and he doesn't respond.

"What John is trying to say is that since we really cannot explain your dreams right now, it's no use fretting over them until we have more information", Malcolm says and I nod. "Exactly. Now I suggest we all try and get some sleep, because we are heading to New York first thing tomorrow morning", I say and Marina asks, "New York? When did we decide on that?". "Well after you girls decided to get back to your rooms and crash, we discussed were to go next, and Nine mentioned having a safe house in New York", Eight explains and Nine nods.

"Sandor set it up in case we were ever attacked in Chicago. It's not as luxurious, but it's more secure than Fort Knox and a hundred Swiss banks put together. I'm not telling you any more though, I want some stuff to be a surprise", he says and looks at Kiara as if wanting her approval. She takes a moment to think before replying, "Well I've always wanted to see New York", and he whoops. "Oh yeah baby! You're gonna love this safe house! And NY is an awesome city!". "So I guess it's final then, first thing tomorrow, we fly to New York", Six says and we all head off to our respective rooms to get whatever sleep we can.

I crash onto my bed and stare at the ceiling, not feeling sleepy at all after what has just happened. It's bad enough that Eight and I have crazy dreams about Ra, and Kiara having them too doesn't make it any better. The thought that Ra can get inside my head unsettles me, and I sit up, trying to clear my thoughts as the door opens. I assume it's just Sam and I don't bother to look up, but then I hear the footsteps make their way over to my bed. I look up to see that it's Sarah, and I smile, she's probably the only one who can make me feel better right now.

She sits down next to me and I pull her into my arms, burying my face in her hair and breathing deeply. I feel better almost instantly and protest when she pulls back slightly to look at me. "You did well back there", she says and I smile wearily. "Well if provoking Nine is any sign of achievement, then yes, I did a great job", I say and she shakes her head. "Forget Nine, he is a bit of a Drama Queen", she says and I laugh. "A bit?", I ask and she corrects herself, "Ok, it's an understatement. But that's not what I'm talking about. You make a good leader, and before you say anything, I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks so", she says and I chuckle. "You know me so well", I tell her as I kiss her softly, pulling her back to me and for a few amazing moments, forget everything around me and focus only on her. She pulls away much too soon, and the door opens to reveal Sam.

"Am I interrupting?", he asks with a smirk and Sarah replies, "Hey Sam, come in. I was just on my way out". He strolls in and Sarah gives me a quick kiss on the cheek before walking out, shutting the door behind her. I lay back in bed and close my eyes, trying to fall asleep. I'm lucky enough to get a few hours of dreamless rest before Sam shakes me awake, saying it's time to go. I pull myself out of bed and quickly wash up, gather my things and meet the others outside.

We load the cars and call the Chimaera while Nine and Six head out to go book tickets. A few minutes later we are on our way to the airport, with Six and Nine weaving between lanes and driving at breakneck speeds. I'm in the same car as Six, Sarah, Malcolm, Sam and Adam, making it easy to pass the time on our way. I smile at the thought of what Marina, Eight and especially Kiara must be going through in the other car. Nine clearly has a soft spot for her, and from what I know, his pickup lines are far from smooth. We reach the airport and ditch the cars in the parking lot, grabbing our chests and running to catch our flight.

We reach the gates with time to spare, and half of us get on the plane while the Six, Nine, Eight and Malcolm stay behind to check for Mogs or anyone suspicious. We all breathe a sigh of relief when they come to their seats, confirming that we have not been followed. Nine sits between Kiara and me in one of the three seaters, with Sarah, Six and Marina behind us. Eight, Sam, Malcolm and Adam sit to our left in the double seaters.

Once we're in the air, the conversation picks up with Nine trying to hit on Kiara.

"So I was thinking about it a few days ago and I came to a theory on how we got our numbers", he says and she looks at him, eyebrows raised. "They were rating us on a scale of one to ten, based on looks. You see, Johnny here ain't much of a looker and that's why he's four, and Six isn't so bad. And you can't deny, I'm easily a nine…", he says waggling his eyebrows at her.

She looks thoughtful for a moment before putting on an expression of mock hurt and asking, "So I'm so unattractive, I'm two?". Nine looks shocked and quickly hurries to correct his mistake, but she laughs at him, knowing fully well that's not what he meant. She catches me staring, grins wickedly and turns her attention back to Nine who gives up, looking defeated. She shakes her head at him, puts on her headphones and closes her eyes.

I follow her lead and doze off to the sound of some lady singing, only to be woken up again by the plane landing in New York. We push and shove our way off the plane and collect our chests. We don't bother with a car this time, as Nine says the safe house is walking distance from the airport and we follow him to a nearby subway entrance.

He starts down the stairs and Six asks, "Nine, this is the subway. Are you sure you know what you're doing?". "Relax. Just follow me", he says and we walk down to the platform and buy tickets for some random destination. Then Nine starts to walk down the platform, until he reaches the edge and just waits there.

A few minutes later, a train enters the station and he jumps down into the small gap between the train and tunnel. "Come on! We don't have time so move your asses and get over here!", he shouts and we all jump into the gap. We end up on a narrow ledge of sorts that is probably used for maintenance and follow Nine. We walk a few feet before he turns to face us.

"Johnny, Marina, I need you two up ahead. Shine your lumen and tell me what's coming up in front of us, I'll direct you. Oh and everyone else, try not to step on the third rail if you don't wanna fry your brains and die, and if you hear a train coming, grab onto something and hold on tight. They create a vacuum in these tunnels that's strong enough to suck you in". "Your safe house is in the tunnels?", Kiara asks disbelief etched all over her face.

"Yup. New York has quite a few abandoned subway tunnels, not in use for the fear of causing cave ins or disturbing buildings with weak foundations. It was easy for Sandor to set this place up, though we never thought we'd have a reason to use it…", he trails off, his face set and Kiara puts a hand on his shoulder in support, making him smile slightly.

We follow Nines directions into the tunnels, thankfully not hearing any trains nearby and soon find ourselves at a dead end. "Here it is", Nine says stepping forward and running his hand over a maintenance door in the corner, wiping away the dust to reveal the loric symbol for nine carved next to it. He presses down on it and the brick sinks in to reveal a keypad, into which he types a code. The door swings open and he gestures for us to step inside, a smirk on his face as he says, "Welcome Folks, to the Bunker".

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**Well this isn't such a great cliffhanger either... :(**

**So tell me what you think, about pairings, about my plot, suggestions/criticism or anything that comes to mind when you read this!**

**I really love reading what you have to say and your reviews play a big part in how I write my next chapter!**

**So until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	15. Chapter 14

**Wow, it's been awhile since my last update!**

**Thank you all for your reviews on my last chapter! They were really encouraging and helpful! **

**I've decided to dedicate this chapter to ****TomFieldings****, seeing as to how he dedicated his last one to me and also because he is one of my most frequent reviewers. Every chapter from now on will be dedicated to one author who I admire and want to thank for their encouragement**

**Here's chapter 14! Hope you like it!**

**Oh and coz I've not done this in a long time...**

**DISCLAIMER: I'm pretty sure I'm not Pittacus Lore, and therefore I do not own the Lorien Legacies.**

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**CHAPTER 14**

TIME SEEMS TO SLOW DOWN. I FEEL THE TRIGGER SLOWLY GIVE WAY UNDER MY FINGER, and feel the sharp recoil from the blaster, stronger than I expected it to be. I watch the fiery red ball exit the barrel and fly towards Five, whose expression is slowly changing to fear as the shot gets nearer. I see his eyes widen in shock, his mouth open as if he wants to say something. He could deflect the fire with his telekinesis, but the shock seems to have gotten to him, he's frozen.

The shot is barely centimeters from his chest, and I'm about to close my eyes when it suddenly stops, and is suspended in mid-air. Then all at once, it soars backwards, straight at me. I quickly roll out of the way as it hits the wall behind me, leaving a circular burn.

I stand up shakily and glare at Ra, whose face has broken into a smile. It's an ugly, grotesque smile, that shows off his pointed teeth and does his disgusting face absolutely no favors I struggle to smile back, and not recoil in horror as I say, "I take that I have convinced you". "Yes, my dear, it seems that you have", Ra says and motions for the Mogadorians holding Five to step back. They release him and he falls to his knees, gasping, and I can see that his wounds are really hurting him.

Apparently Ra notices this too as he says, "Zakos, take Five to the infirmary, it's about time his wounds were healed". Five looks up at him and Ra nods, "You have done well, soldier. And you shall be rewarded". Five slowly gets to his feet and walks out, followed by Zakos and the remaining Mogs, leaving me alone with Ra.

"Ella", Ra says, turning to me, "I presume that you are hungry?". I can't stop myself from nodding, the bread and fruit are long gone, and I feel famished again. He claps his hands and a Mog walks in, pushing a silver cart with a tray on top of it. He stops in front of me and I see that it's piled high with sandwiches. I turn to Ra, as he says, "I would offer you more, but there will be a grand feast this evening, in your honor of course, and it would be a shame if you could not eat then".

I nod and glance back at the sandwiches, pretending to be deciding which one to eat while in reality, I'm wondering if these are drugged or not. Setrakus believes that the drugs caused my change in personality, and I'm sure he wouldn't want it to change back. Convinced that the sandwiches are drug free, I finally pick one up and bite into it. It's warm, and I taste grilled cheese and tomato. I smile despite myself, weeks of cold soup in a cell can do that to you, and I quickly wolf it down before reaching for a second. I demolish the first five sandwiches before slowing down and looking up at Ra.

He stands on the dais, and is shifting through a holographic screen of data with his hands. I grab one more sandwich as I slowly make my way towards him, trying to get a better look at what he is doing. He catches me staring and says, "Come. There is a lot I must show you, my heir". I nearly flinch at him calling me his "heir", but control myself as I stop next to him and stare up at the screens. I gasp in horror at the sight in front of me. Open on the screens are files on all the Garde, from One to Nine, with pictures and pages of information about their legacies and known whereabouts. I glance quickly at each, trying to memorize as much as I can, for all I know, the Mogs might know more than we do.

I start with Number One, a blonde, pretty girl who looks around thirteen or fourteen years old. It describes her death, and talks a bit about her Cepan, a woman named Hilde. There's nothing specific about her legacies, just a line saying that she seemed to be able to create earthquakes. From what I gather, she appears to have received her first legacy just before death. I see a link at the bottom to another file, but I dare not open it with Setrakus watching me intently from the corner of his eye.

I move on to Number Two, whose file is much shorter than One's. She's was small girl, my age when she died and had reddish hair, like me. I read about her Cepan, a man named Conrad and how the Mogs tracked her down through him. I read about her death, and a single line at the bottom catches my attention. "Credit for death: Ivanick Shu-Ra", it says and I clench my fists. Credit for death, I wonder if he was felicitated, I think and I'm so disgusted, I have to look away. I'm about to start on Three's file when Ra claps and the screens disappear.

I look to him, confused and he says, "There is a lot to be read, but now is not the time. You must be familiarized with your new home, now that you are one of us". One of us. The thought of it is unbearable. After what the Mogs have done to One, Two, Three and Eight, I'd rather die than join them. But for the sake of keeping up the act, I nod and try to look excited. Ra steps down onto a silver circle in the floor, which immediately rises a few inches above the ground. He motions for me to follow and I jump on, trying to maintain my balance as it slowly starts floating forwards.

The doors open and close, and soon we're floating down the twisting corridors. I look left and right, trying to create a map in my head as I read signs like "Data", "Servers" and a large one that reads "Lab". We stop in front of it and a door swings open to my right. We float inside and I see people in white lab coats prodding at something in a large cage at the center of the room. I look closer and see that it's a large mountain lion, that roars loudly before glowing slightly and shrinking to a small dog.

It's a Chimaera, I realize and I have to contain the urge to scream every profanity I know at Ra and the other Mogs. I remember Olivia, and how she sacrificed her life to save us back in Spain, and I feel sick. "We are in the process of isolating the gene that allows these beasts to shift form, and will soon replicate it into our soldiers DNA", one scientist says, probably taking the look of shock and disgust to be amazement. I turn to look at her and realize that she's not a Mog, but human. I look back at the Chimaera, which is now cowering in the corner of it's cage and wish I could do something to help it. I consider asking for one to keep as a pet, but that would only raise suspicions, so I don't say anything as we float back out and down the corridor.

We stop again in at a sign reading "Control Room" and float into a room with a wall filled from floor to ceiling with monitors. I glance up at them and see that they're tuned into various news channels, all talking about a fire in the John Hancock Center in Chicago. The Garde! I almost cry out as I see Nine's penthouse in flames, knowing that the Mogs have attacked them. "How did you know?", I ask Ra, though I'm pretty sure I know the answer. "Number Five, the loyal soldier that he is informed us of the Garde's whereabouts, and so we were successfully able to rescue you from their hideout", he replies and looks at me. "I must thank him then", I say, trying to look relieved but in reality am so angry I want to grab a knife and stab him through the heart. "You will have the opportunity to do so later at the feast", he tells me as we leave the room and continue the tour.

We visit several other rooms, a training center and also quickly pass through the barracks, where the Mog soldiers line up and salute us as we go by. Finally, we stop at the doors to my room, the room I woke up in, that is and Ra leads me inside. "These are your quarters", he tells me as I look around and realize that the room has been cleaned and various items like a TV, sofa and mini fridge have been added. "You can call for anything you require, at any time of day", he says, gesturing to a microphone like device on a table nearby before continuing. "But for now, I suggest that you clean up and get ready, for the feast starts in an hour and a half. I will send someone to fetch you to the throne room when it's time", he says and I reply, "There is no need for that. I know the way to the throne room, and I won't get lost", I tell him and he smiles. "Very well my dear, I shall see you soon", he says and walks out of the room, leaving me alone.

I collapse onto the bed and stare at the ceiling. I breathe deeply, processing all that has happened today and wondering what the Garde are doing right now. I hope that John, Sarah and the others made it out of Chicago OK and then I remember Eight. I let out all my tears of frustration and regret, sobbing into the sheets and wailing. If the Mogs are watching me right now, I can make up an excuse later, but now, I need to grieve. I think of Marina, and how much she liked him, and pray that she's OK We are a team after all. I hope they have all managed to meet up, and wonder what they would think if they saw me now. Pretending to side with the Mogs to evade torture and gain valuable information. Six and Nine would be proud, while Marina would probably lecture me on how dangerous it is, I sit up and dry my tears. I have to stay strong, for myself and for all the others' sake. A mistake on my part could lead to repercussions on us all, something I will not let to happen.

I pull myself together and decide to take a shower. The water washes away the dirt from the cell, dried blood, my tears and any second thoughts I'm having about my plan. It's working so far, so it's possible I can see it through. I wrap a towel around me and walk back into my room, wondering if the Mogs have left me anything to wear. I open the cupboard and find a line of dresses, mostly black but some blood red. I pick a black, full sleeved, floor length gown with gold designs. It's the only one without Mog symbols and it's actually kind of pretty. I braid my hair back and look at myself in the mirror. The girl who stares back at me is the same one who I knew back at the penthouse, but that's only on the surface. I know now that this war depends on my ability to be strong, and a warrior like Six, if I need to.

I look away and glance at a clock on the wall. I have half an hour before the feast begins and I step out of my room into the empty corridors. Everyone's getting ready, I think to myself as I make my way towards the throne room. On the way, I stop at a door and to my luck it swings open. I step inside the lab and look for the Chimaera's cage. It's still in the middle of the room and it's occupant is now a tiny puppy, asleep on it's front paws. I start towards the cage and on my way, bump into a nearby stool.

The Chimaera wakes up and growls at the noise, staring at me warily. "It's OK I'm not going to hurt you", I say softly and it suddenly looks curious. I approach the cage and try to open the lock, but it's electronic and my telekinesis is no use. The puppy whines at me, pawing at the cage and I try not to sob. It's so small, so helpless and I can't do anything. "I'm sorry", I say and it looks at me, "I'm just as trapped as you are right now. But I'm going to get out soon, and when I do I'll take you with me. I promise". It gives a small whine and rubs itself against my hand through the tightly woven cage. "Hope", I say, suddenly thinking of a name for my new friend, "I'm going to call you Hope", I say and Hope gives a short bark. I smile and suddenly remember that I'm supposed to be at the feast.

"I have to go now", I say as I stand up and Hope whines, "But I'll be back real soon, I promise!", I say as I rush out.

I enter the throne room and find it filled with Mogs, some soldiers and some like Ivanick, who look more human. All conversation stops when they catch sight of me and I walk confidently up to the head table and take my place next to Ra, who smiles as I approach.

I sit down and he nods at me before standing up and saying, "Now that we are all here, I have a few words". The Mogs look excited as Setrakus continues, "Today we are one step closer to our goal, to progress and expansion", he says and everyone cheers.

"Today", he says, gesturing for silence, "Today we feast for not one, but two reasons. Primarily, we feast for the arrival of my Heir and Successor, Ella". He indicates me and the Mogs cheer as I bow my head in acknowledgement. "And we also feast for another reason, for we are now one step closer to ridding the universe of the Garde, for Number Eight is dead!", he says and the cheers only get louder, turning into a riotous celebration.

I feel sick, and try as hard as I can to look happy and excited. "And so, I feel that it is only right that Ella be the one to honor the brave soldier who has slain this Garde in the name of Mogadorian progress", he says and I stand up, ready to protest.

He gestures for me to step forward and take a small pin from a pedestal nearby. It's silver and shaped like a sword, my hands shake as I hold it.

"And now, I call upon our brave recipient of this honor , Ra says and my eyes scan the crowd for a Mog soldier getting up, but I see none. Instead, my heart sinks and I have the urge to scream out as I see Five, now completely healed with a patch over his eye, slowly stand up and walk towards me.

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**Yayy! Cliffhanger! (Sorry guys :P )**

**I would really love to get a total of 70 or more reviews before posting my next chapter, so please tell me what you think, even if you think this chapter kinda sucks and needs improvement, I want to know!**

**So until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	16. Chapter 15

**Hello everyone, I'm back..**

**So I didn't reach my target of 70, and in fact got less reviews than normal... *discouraged face*, but thank you everyone who ****did**** review! **

**This chapter is kind of a filler, and more of a prelude to the important stuff in the next one... but I enjoyed writing it so... :)**

**I dedicate this to scone104. Your stories were some of the first I read on this website and they inspired me to stop being lazy and write ( :P) ... so thank you SO much !**

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**CHAPTER 15**

"NOW THIS PLACE ISN'T AS GREAT AS CHICAGO, FROM WHAT I KNOW AT LEAST ... SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO ROUGH IT", NINE ANNOUNCES as we walk past him into the dark "bunker". He claps his hand and the lights turn on, momentarily blinding us. I blink rapidly as my eyes adjust and once they do, I look around at what is clearly the most luxurious version of "roughing it" in the universe. The Bunker is a long tunnel, and at the far end I can see a huge flat screen TV mounted on the wall in front of a sofa set. To the right is a kitchen, appliances gleaming in the bright lighting and next to it is a dining area. There are beanbags and recliners everywhere, but not a bed in sight.

"Well, what do you think?", Nine asks and I turn to answer when I see him looking at Kiara. Of course he wants her opinion first. "You really fail to understand the meaning of "roughing it", but this place is awesome!", she says turning to him, her eyes gleaming in wonder.

I frown and Marina puts her hand on my arm. "Eight", she says warning me and I take a deep breath. She's right, Kiara can handle herself and plus, it's a little too soon to be playing protective brother. "I'm fine", I tell her and she takes my hand, smiling slightly.

"So people, ready for the grand tour?", Nine says as he shuts the door and suddenly the TV in the far end of the room turns on. We all tense at the sound and prepare for something to come flying out and attack us, but nothing does and slowly, a man's face forms on the screen. He has black hair, a thick beard covering what looks like a scar, and looks to be in his mid thirties. I look around at the others, confused and Nine steps forward, his face a mask of shock. "Sandor", he says softly and walks to the end of the hall, the rest of us trailing behind him.

Nine's Cepan, I realize with a jolt and stare back at the screen, where he has begun to speak.

"Nine, if you are seeing this it means that our safe house in Chicago was attacked, and I am no longer alive. In that case, I'm glad that you are alright, and I hope that you have managed to find the rest of the Garde and that they are with you right now. So anyway, welcome to the Bunker!", he says and Nine sinks into a nearby sofa, eyes not leaving the screen. We all take our seats as Sandor continues, "Nine, you were the only Garde told of the whereabouts of this safe house though each and every one of the Cepans were involved in setting it up".

"What?", Kiara exclaims in shock and we shush her as we listen. "Back on the ship, on the way to Earth, the topic of the war against the Mogadorians was not an uncommon one. We Cepans discussed your training, and soon realized that in the event that any one of you were attacked, we would give our lives to protect you. This meant that if such a thing happened, you would have nowhere to go, and no one to train you. So we agreed that we had to create a way to keep you safe, even after we were gone, and to make a record of everything we had to tell you in the event we could not do so by then. That's when we came up with the Bunker. This is probably one of the safest hideouts we could ever create, and was meant to be the last refuge for any Garde and Cepan without a place to go. All the Cepans were given an access code, but we agreed that it would only be used in the gravest of circumstances, for if the Mogs found this place and somehow managed to break in, all hopes of winning this war would be gone", Sandor says and I'm in shock.

The Cepans planned for us to come here? Reynolds helped create a secret bunker?

"I gave you a different code, Nine, one that would open the Bunker, yes, but would also set up additional safety perimeters and other defensive measures around the area once used. So don't worry too much about the Mogs finding you here", he says with a grin and continues, "So let me give you the grand tour. You've probably seen the Kitchen already...", he says and I find myself nodding, even though it's only a video. I quickly stop but Marina sees me and smiles. I grin back and put an arm around her, pulling her closer to me on the couch.

"But that's not all", he says and we turn around and look behind us for any door or something we missed while walking in. "You might have noticed the lack of beds, that's because we believed that you shouldn't rest until you defeat the Mogs", Sandor says and we turn back to the screen to see him smirking, "Just kidding, the door to the dorms should open now", he says and a section of the wall slides open to our right.

Well now I know where Nine gets his sense of humor and his lame jokes. I look to my left and see him smiling, shaking his head in disbelief . "And there's more, the door opening now leads to the Control room, and the one ahead leads to your new training center, the Lecture hall 2.0, if you wish".

Nine jumps off the couch and looks like he's about to set off running to the Lecture hall when Sandor continues, "And before you go running for the equipment, Nine", he says and we all laugh as Nine turns to face the screen, looking sulky, "I suggest you get comfortable and get some rest. The drills I've set up are far from easy". Nine scoffs and shakes his head, overconfident as usual as Sandor finishes up. "So that's about all you need to know for now, so take care buddy and kick some Mog ass!", he says and the screen goes black.

Nine turns to face us grinning widely. "This is so awesome!", he says and we all laugh. We pull ourselves up and off the couches as Nine runs for the dorms. "I call the biggest room!", he yells over his shoulder and we run after him into a long corridor with four doors. "OK, so it says here that every room is for two people to share, and there are six rooms, not that it matters to me...", Nine says after reading off of a sign on the wall.

"Wow, Nine did you just read that?", I ask feigning disbelief and Sam adds, "Nine, you can read?". We burst out laughing at his expression and Nine looks pissed. "Six rooms and four doors...there must be a connection to two more from inside", Kiara says before he can retort and he nods.

"I'm bunking alone, unless you want to share", he says to her, wagging his eyebrows suggestively and she looks at him, clearly amused. "Sorry to disappoint you, Nine, but I'll pass", she says and he puts on a mock sad face, making her laugh.

"Marina and I will share", she says and Marina nods, "That leaves you and Sarah, Six". "That's fine", Sarah says and Six nods her approval. The girls enter the door on the left, and announce that there are two adjoining rooms, which they will share. That leaves us guys to figure out our arrangements. We finally settle on Sam sharing with John while I share with Adam, and Nine and Malcolm get individual rooms.

Adam and I enter the room on the right, and I see two single beds against opposite walls, a wall mounted TV and two wardrobes, a mini fridge and a couple of bean bags. "Nine really doesn't get the concept of roughing it, does he?", Adam asks me and I shake my head, chuckling to myself. He's a nice guy, Adam, and while I didn't trust him at first, I'm pretty sure I can now. "You wanna shower first?", he asks and I nod, grabbing some clothes out of my bag and heading for the attached bathroom. I shower and dress quickly before heading out to the living area.

I flop down on the couch next to Marina, who is flipping channels and flash her a smile. "So, what do you say to a quick spin around New York?", I ask her and she smiles at me as she shakes her head. "You know we can't do that. Remember what happened last time?", she asks and I scoff. "You mean Nine getting mad at us? Don't tell me you're worried about that", I tell her and she replies, "I'm not, but we just got here, don't you think we should wait awhile before disappearing on everyone?",she asks. I look at her, disappointed and she gives me a small smile.

"But we could always do something fun here", she says and I smile as I lean in to kiss her. I hear someone laugh from behind us and we pull away. I see Kiara sitting on the kitchen counter, holding a half eating apple and laughing. Standing next to her, shirtless is Nine, who grins as she shakes her head and replies to whatever he said and I have to resist the urge to get up and punch him in the face.

"Well he's not very subtle about it, is he?", Marina asks, smiling as she looks between me and the two of them. "She's smart", I say, mostly to myself and Marina shakes her head. "Smart or not, shirtless guys can be pretty distracting", she says and I raise my eyebrows. "You find Nine distracting?", I ask in disbelief and she laughs as she gets up. "I never said that, but remember you were shirtless when I first met you….", she says, winking at me as she walks to the kitchen.

I grin at her retreating figure and watch her walk past Nine and to the stove. Kiara jumps down from the counter and goes to help her as she pours over a cookbook she pulled out from a cabinet behind her, and Nine walks towards the couch and flops down next to me. He grabs the remote and sets the TV to the sports channel before turning to me. "So, you and Marina a thing now?", he asks and I nod, making him smirk.

I'm about to start on him and Kiara when Six walks in and pulls the remote out of Nine's hand. "Sports?", she asks and Nine starts to protest when she adds, "And put on a shirt. It's gonna take a way lot more than that if you want to impress her". Nine gapes and says defiantly, "I'm not trying to impress Kiara". "I never said you were, but thanks for confirming my suspicions", Six says, smirking as he gets up, grumbling and walks towards the dorms, passing John and Sarah.

"What happened to him?", Sarah asks but Six and I are laughing too hard to answer. She smiles, shakes her head and goes to join Kiara and Marina in the Kitchen. John sits down and patiently waits for us to stop and explain, and once we do, we all start laughing again. "What's so funny?", Kiara asks coming over and that sets us off again. She raises her eyebrows at us as Nine walks in, now wearing a Tee shirt. "Do you know what happened to these three?", she asks him and he grunts out a no, glaring at us until we stop, clutching our stomachs.

"Anyway, Dinner's ready! Marina, Sarah and I made spaghetti!", she says and we follow her to the kitchen to get our plates. I've barely taken my first bite when Sam and Adam come running out of the Control Room. "Guys, you have to see this", Sam says and we follow them inside.

Malcolm sits on an office chair, starting at the screen and looks up as we enter. "I was going through the system, and I found some stuff I thought you all would want to see", he says as we gather around to get a closer look, and what we see shocks us speechless.

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**Hmmm... when should I update? :P**

**Since keeping review targets seems to be pointless... review if you liked it, and if you want to suggest something, ask a question and what not :P Though I would really love it if you did... **

**So until next time...**

**thesecondgarde**


	17. Chapter 16

**Hello everyone...**

**Thank you all for your reviews on my last chapter, they were extremely encouraging and helpful...**

**Zoren291 ****, I'm glad you like it, but I assure you, I'm not Pittacus Lore. If I was, Eight would not have died in the first place.**

**Loricwarrior9 ****, Thank you so much, and there's more NinexKiara in this chapter :P**

**Posk123, scone104 and TomFieldings,**** thank you for your reviews, not only for this chapter but like every single one before it :)**

**And also a big thanks to everyone who has followed/favorited (I know it's not a word :P) my story! **

**and thank you all those people who read my story! I've crossed 3000 views with my last chapter, and I'm so thrilled right now :P :)**

**I dedicate this chapter to Posk123, thanks for your support and I love your stories!**

**So sorry for the long A/N... onto chapter 16!**

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** CHAPTER 16**

I WATCH RECOGNITION FLASH IN THE GARDE'S EYES AS THEY STARE AT THE SCREEN IN SHOCK. SOME OF THEM, LIKE Six and Nine don't really react too much, apart from gaping at the screen, while the same can't be said about everyone else. Kiara reaches out to touch the screen, tears silently flowing down her cheeks. Marina lets out a choked sob and reaches for Eight, who has closed his eyes and seems to be reciting something to himself. John reaches out for a chair, his eyes fixed on the screen as he collapses into it, looking like someone has punched him in the gut.

I'm not surprised by their reactions, I went through a similar phase when I first saw it myself. My dad and I had been going through Sandor's files, looking for the information he had mentioned, when Adam had walked in, clutching the tablet. We had hunted around for a cable similar to the one we used in Nine's penthouse and found it already connected to the system. We plugged in the tablet and all of a sudden the screen went black and lines of code began to flash on it. We were about to disconnect it when the main screen suddenly flashed and filled with the image of nine people sitting around a table. I stared for a few minutes, trying to figure out what was going on when I recognised him.

He was much younger, obviously, but there was no doubt it was him, that it was Henri. And that's when I realised that I was looking at the Cepans, all of whom are now dead. I looked at my dad, whose face was scrunched up as if he was trying to remember something before I turned to Adam, only to find him looking as shocked as I was as he stared at a woman in the extreme left. "Hilde", he had murmured before saying, "We have got to show the others" and so we did.

"Where did you find this?", Kiara asks, her eyes flitting between the screen and the three of us and Adam replies, "It just popped up the second we connected the tablet. I recognised Hilde, she's One's Cepan, the lady on the left and once I realised who the others were…. well…", he trails off, but they seem to understand. "This was taken on the ship, Katarina is much younger in this picture", Six says and and John nods, agreeing with her as she steps forward to get a better look. I find myself staring at her as she reaches for the mouse and rolls over the image, which suddenly starts moving. "It's a video", she says and steps back as the Cepan begin to speak.

"Ok, um testing…. Sandor is this damn thing even on?", one man asks, stepping towards the camera and Eight laughs. "Reynolds", he says shaking his head fondly and Marina squeezes his arm. "Reynolds I swear you're gonna break it, now step back, it's recording", Sandor's voice says and Reynolds gets back to his place. Hilde, as Adam calls her, steps forward and begins to speak. "Ok, so since you already know who we are, let's get down to the point-", she says and the man to her left interrupts, "What Hessu means to say is that you probably already know us, and in case you don't, we wouldn't mind introducing ourselves". Hilde, or rather Hessu (I realise they are probably using their loric names) glares at him, but says, "I'm Hessu, Cepan of Number One".

One by one, the Cepans introduce themselves in order of their respective Garde. The man who interrupted Hessu at the beginning is Conrad, Two's Cepan and the man next to him is Mark. Then it's on to Henri, who introduces himself as Brandon and the man next to him is Rey. Then comes Katar, Six's Cepan, Adel, who is Marina's and Reynolds and Sandor, who we already know. "Now that we're done with that", Katar says and motions for Hessu to continue. "Since you are watching this video, it's very likely that all of us", she motions to the others around her, "are dead", Hessu says and Reynolds adds, "Well that's putting it lightly". She scowls at him as Conrad continues, "We made this video in the hopes that one day, we will be able to explain everything, about Lorien, your legacies and this war we are fighting". "Now that you have found the bunker, assuming you have and Sandor's tech is working-", he says and Sandor protests, "Of course it's going to work! I designed the stuff myself!".

"As I was saying, you should be able to access data and video files with the information you require, all on this system", he says and Brandon, or Henri continues, "However, a lot of this information is sensitive, and so we found a way to keep those bits out of your reach until you are ready for it". "What?", Nine protests and we all shush him violently, forcing him to shut up. "After this message, you will be directed to a series of questions which will judge how much you already know, and will correspondingly open files you will require and keep those you will not until such time that you do", Rey says and Katar adds, "Oh and Sandor has asked me to inform you that the system is "un-hackable", and so don't bother trying to get at stuff before you're ready for it".

"It may seem unfair now, but trust me when I say there's a lot here you are better off not knowing", Adel says and motions to Reynolds, "Finally my turn", he says and she gives him a look, "So train hard, study hard, whatever, and take a look at the library, the books should be able to answer a lot of questions". "Library?", Kiara asks, her eyes suddenly gleaming as Sandor finishes, "So have fun, young wards, and make us proud".

The room falls silent as the screen goes black, and then displays a single question. "Inhabitants of which planet invaded Lorien?", Marina reads out and Nine scoffs, "Seriously? This is the kind of stuff they want to tell us?". "This is only the first question, Nine", Kiara says as she reaches over Adam to type in "Mogadore".

And she's right.

As the questions go by, the Garde's struggle to answer them increases until they're stuck. "Name the Tenth elder of Lorien", Six reads out and looks around at us all. "No clue", Eight says and the others nod. "Guess something!", Nine says and Six glares at him, "Like what?", she challenges and he falls silent. She smirks at me and I smile, admiring how pretty she looks in the semi darkness of the control room.

"You can always answer this later, for now, let's see what you managed to open", Dad says and closes the question window to reveal that more than half of the files are now unlocked. He clicks on one labelled "Garde" and it opens to reveal a line of numbers and names. "What is this?", Marina asks and everyone scans the list for some clue as to what it means. "Our loric names", Kiara says and I look at her, eyebrows raised. "Kiara is mine, and Eight's is Joseph, and they are both on the list", she explains and I look back at the screen, which confirms it. "Jonathan", John reads out the name next to four and smiles, "Well that's lucky".

"I'm Kara", Marina says, sounding a bit unsure and Eight puts an arm around her. "Kara's a pretty name, but for the record, I like Marina better", he tells her and she smiles at him. "Leo?", Nine says reading out his name and looks thrilled. "It's so much better than Stanley!", he says and Kiara raises her eyebrows at him. "Who's Stanley?", she asks and he quickly replies, "No one..". "Lira", Six says under her breath and I look up at the screen. Sure enough, her loric name is Lira. "Oh damn, here I was hoping it would be something like Stryker or Eagle, but Lira's great too!", I joke and she smiles at me, remembering our conversation in the car. "I still want to be called Six, though", she says and I nod, "I don't think any of you, apart from John and Kia that it, want to be called anything else but what we have been calling you so far, so let's just forget about Lira and stuff for now". She smiles at me and I take her hand, thrilled when she doesn't pull away.

Dad closes the names file and scrolls down to a folder labelled "Chest Contents" and opens it to reveal nearly a hundred files, most of which are unlocked. "Maybe we can finally figure out what the stuff does", John says and all the Garde, with the exception of Six file out to retrieve their chests. I see her face fall as she stares at the screen and I pull her back, away from my dad and Adam. "Hey, we'll find yours one day, don't worry", I tell her and she looks at me, her eyes clearly reflecting her disappointment. "One day?", she asks looking sadly at me and I pull her into my arms. "One day real soon, I promise", I tell her and she hugs me back. I'm not used to Six being like this, showing how she feels, seeking or even accepting comfort, but I'm not complaining. It's nice to be able to be there for her, and I'm honored that she trusts me enough to confide in me.

She pulls away and mutters "Thanks", as the other Garde walk in, now clutching their chests. "Ok everyone, open up your chests and let's figure out who has what!", Nine says, sitting down on one of the chairs and opening his chest. The others do the same, but I notice Kiara hesitating. I'm about to ask her what's wrong when Nine beats me to it. She shakes her head and places her hand on the lock, causing it to fall open. She takes a quick look inside before looking up at my Dad to indicate that she's ready. "Ok, I'm going to open these files one at a time and we'll find out what everything does. Any questions?", he asks and when no one says anything, he opens up the first file to reveal John's Solar system, "I have that!", John says, pulling it out as Kiara exclaims, "So do I!".

He turns to her, looking a bit confused as he says, "But that doesn't make any sense, Henri told me it was not really part of my inheritance". "One had it too, Hilde showed it to her once...", Adam adds and the two of them look confused, "Conrad did too, but then why is it so important? It's just a toy of some sort", she says and John smiles. "Activate it", he tells her and she does, blowing on the orbs and we watch as they float up. Suddenly, they come together to form a globe of Earth and she gasps, "It didn't do this the last time". "That's because it requires at least one other person's chest to be open at the same time…. it's a Macrocosm", he explains and demonstrates how it works with a compass he gets from Nine's chest. We spend about an hour but to little use. Most of the unlocked items aren't in any of the chests, leading us to believe they were either One's, Three's or Five's inheritance and the rest are ones we already know about, like the healing stone and Xitharis.

Soon all attention turns to Kiara, as we start to catalogue the items in her chest adding it to the list we made back in Chicago. Apart from her staff-sword, she has a healing stone, some other strange crystals, a cloak of some sort, some sea shells, and two Xitharis stones. "You got two of those?", Six asks in disbelief as she passes them around, "Good thing too, that piece of shit Five "lost" our last one". Everyone stiffens at the mention of Five, but relaxes as Kiara pulls out the last two items from her chest, a flask of some light blue liquid and what looks like a roll of tape. "This", she says holding up the flask, "is Loricyde. Conrad showed it to me and told me it was poisonous to Mogs, but harmless to us. It's also armor piercing, I used it on my sword-staff back in Dulce", she says and Marina nods, as if she knows and Adam says, "So that's why you had no trouble with those Mogs, I mean, not that you aren't a great fighter and all..", he trails off and Kiara smiles at him. I notice Nine tense up a bit next to her and glare at Adam, but I don't say anything.

"But I'm clueless about this", she says holding up the tape and I say, "Well it looks like tape, maybe you can use it to fix stuff". Everyone looks at me like it's the dumbest thing they have ever heard but Kiara takes it up. "It wouldn't hurt to try, anyone's got anything that's broken?", she asks and Nine stands up, reaches into his pocket and pulls out two rods of metal. "Try this", he tells her and she stares at it, confused. "Your pipe staff!", Marina exclaims and he nods, holding it together for Kiara to wrap the tape around it. At first, nothing appears to be happening but suddenly, the tape turns the same colour as the staff metal and melts to fix it. Nine flicks his wrist and the staff expands, glowing red and blades spinning. "Oh yeah baby!", he exclaims and uses his free arm to pull Kiara in for a hug.

"Thanks", he says to her as she pulls away and she smiles, looking a bit confused by his actions as she replies, "You're welcome". He shakes his head, smiling slightly as he releases her and suddenly glares at Adam, and I get it. "Did he just tell Adam to back off or something?", Six asks me, looking amused and I smile. "I think so…", I say, grinning back and we both start laughing, causing the others to stare at us like we've gone mad. We stop after a little while and ignoring the confused looks from everyone, make our way out of the control room.

Everyone else follows and soon we're all sitting at the dining table, eating reheated spaghetti when suddenly something brushes against my leg. "What the-", I say, lifting up the tablecloth to reveal one of the Chimaera in puppy form. "Hey buddy, are you hungry?", I ask and I get a "woof" in response. I give him a meatball from my plate and soon the whole group of them crowd around me. Everyone laughs at my failing attempt to stand up and walk to the kitchen, carefully avoiding the Chimaera's tails before I give up and sit on the floor, shooting a pleading look at the others. Finally Sarah gets up and grabs some leftovers from the kitchen and sets them out for the Chimaera, who dig in eagerly. Kiara finishes eating and sits down next to me, holding out some scraps.

A Chimaera breaks off from the pack and walks towards her outstretched hand as it morphs into a white kitten. She watches in wonder as it eats and then looks up at her, as if it expects her to pet it. "She wants attention", Nine says, getting up from the table and making his way towards us. "You can talk to animals?", she asks looking excited and he nods, sitting down next to her. She pulls the kitten into her lap and strokes it's fur, smiling when it purrs in delight. She looks up at Nine and smiles, and I take it to be my cue to leave them alone. Whatever's going on there, well, I'm not eager to get in the middle of it.

I find Six sitting on the couch, talking to Sarah and I go over to them. "Hey Sam, we were just talking about you", Sarah says and I smile, "Should I be worried?", I ask and she laughs, shaking her head. "Sarah was wondering if you would mind sharing a room with me, since she wants to share with John and stuff...I mean, just a room, not the bed and …", Six trails off, looking a little flustered and I grin. "I don't mind, as long as you don't", I tell her and she smiles as she replies, "I'm ok with it". "Great, so move your stuff out, and for god's sake don't tell Nine", Sarah says and we laugh. "Chill, I'm sure he won't notice, now all his attention is elsewhere…", I say nodding at where he sits next to Kiara, playing with the Chimaera. "Let's see how far that goes", Sarah says and I raise my eyebrows at her.

"What? Am I the only one who noticed Eight getting all brotherly protective earlier today?", she asks and we laugh as she gets up to leave. She walks over to John and the two of them retreat into the dorms. I lean back and look at Six, who yawns and rubs her eyes, looking adorable. "Come on sleepyhead", I tell her and she smiles sleepily at me as I pull her up off the couch and we walk to our room. I'll get my stuff in the morning, I decide as I collapse on one of the beds while Six takes the other. " 'Night Six", I say and she replies, "Goodnight Sam", her voice muffled by the comforters she's pulled up over her head.

I close my eyes and smile, thinking about Six as I drift off to sleep. I only get a few hours before I wake up to find her at the door, looking out into the corridor. "What happened?", I ask groggily and she turns to me, all business as she replies, "It's John and Eight, they had some kind of shared dream with Setrakus Ra….and Ella".

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**Okay so this was still kind of a filler... I know you guys are probably craving for some action, and there will be fight scenes in the coming chapters, I promise (as well as a crazy cliffhanger, but you knew that :P )**

**So please review and tell me what you think!**

**Oh and just a random trivia question, how does Marina know about Loricyde? Let's see how many of you can remember :P**

**Until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	18. Chapter 17

**Hey guys!**

**I got 8 reviews on my last chapter (the most I've ever gotten for a single chapter!) and so I'd like to thank charasweet, taarak, Loricwarrior9, Zoren291, Posk123, scone104, PD106 and of course, Tom for your reviews! **

**I was so thrilled, I decided to post this rather ****special**** chapter... :) Dedicated to ****Mysteryfanaticno1, ****who was my first and fiftieth reviewer! :) Thank you for all your support!**

**So here's chapter 17 (I never thought I'd get this far!)**

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**CHAPTER 17**

MY HANDS BEGIN TO SHAKE UNCONTROLLABLY AND I STRUGGLE TO KEEP MY ANGER IN CHECK. THE THOUGHT OF FIVE BEING A TRAITOR TO HIS own dying race is appalling enough, and the revelation that he has not just betrayed us, but murdered one of our own. I feel my fake smile slipping into a snarl, and have to quickly pull myself together.

I watch his expression carefully as he approaches me, looking for any trace of guilt, but I see none. His expression is unreadable, and he gives absolutely no indication as to what he's thinking as he climbs up the elevated platform and stops in front of me. "Ella", Ra says, indicating that I should go ahead and "honour" Five by pinning the badge to the front of his uniform, which I now realize is shockingly similar to the Generals. I nod back at him and try to look excited and happy as I do so, resisting the urge to stab him in his one remaining eye and scream at him for being a traitor.

Once I'm done, Five steps back and looks me in the eye, as if expecting me to do something else and twitches his right hand forwards. He wants me to shake his hand, I realize and extend my hand to him. He shakes my hand firmly and I notice his eyes soften as he looks at me. I double take and stare back at him, only to find that the expressionless mask has returned as he steps back and takes his place to my right as the Mogs around us clap and cheer. I watch him nod at the Mogs and then fix his eyes at a point on the opposite wall.

I want to ask him why, why he betrayed us and why he killed Eight, but it would be stupid to do so now, and so I decide to read his mind. I focus on the idea of reaching into his consciousness, but the feeling of my legacy does not come, I hear nothing. I try again on a nearby Mog and when it doesn't work, I try using my telekinesis to lift a nearby glass. I pray that it floats up, even if it's only a few inches, but I have no such luck. Suddenly, I start to panic. Here I am, in a room full of Mogs, standing in between the Mog leader and a cold-blooded Loric traitor and murderer, without legacies or a way to fight my way out. I desperately call out in my mind for the others, and beg them to come and save me, but I know they can't hear me. The struggle to keep up the happy facade increases as I force down the growing lump in my throat and quickly survey the hall, looking for an exit.

There's only one way out, and that's the way I came in, through the large sliding doors all the way on the other side of the hall. Fighting my way out is hopeless, I would be overpowered before I made it down from the platform. Making an excuse to leave now would look too suspicious, especially since I have only just gained Ra's trust and that leaves me only one option.

I have to wait this out.

I spend the next three hours trying to look like I'm enjoying myself, eating and trying to avoid talking to anyone. Luckily for me, the food is really good and I eat until my stomach is about to burst. As I stuff my face with everything from dinner rolls to pastries, I formulate an escape plan of sorts, and am just about figuring out how to find my way out of the base when I let out a yawn. I'm imagining a comfy bed when Ra's voice pulls me out of my thoughts. "Ella, I am glad that you are enjoying yourself, but we start your training early tomorrow morning and I'm sure you must be tired", he says, and I know a cue to leave when I see one. "Well, I must admit that I would love to get a few hours of rest. That is, only if I can be excuesed...", I trail off as he nods his approval, and I rise and make my way out of the crowded hall into the empty corridor.

I quickly walk down the halls to my room, where I hunt in the closet for a pair of pants. If I have to fight my way out of here I'm sure as hell not going to be able to do so in a dress. I finally find a pair of black pants and a red tunic in the back of the closet, and though they are both embroidered in Mog symbols, they'll have to do. I quickly scan my room for anything else that may be of use, like a backpack or maybe some food, when my eyes land on the mini fridge in the corner. I open it to find it stocked with candy bars, and I fill my pockets with the much needed sugar, which will prove to be helpful in case I get tired. After one more quick sweep of the room, I step back into the corridor and head for the training centre I saw earlier.

On the way I pass the lab, and as much as I want to go and get Hope, it's too risky to try right now, especially since I'm unarmed and my telekinesis doesn't work on the lock of her cage. "I'll come back", I say under my breath as I walk past, silently resolving that I will get her out of here before I go. I find the training centre easily, having taken special note of it's location on my tour and am thrilled when the sliding doors open to admit me inside. Thankfully, the large training hall is empty and I quickly make my way over to a large touch-screen control panel on a nearby wall. I select "firing range" under the training menu and hold my breath as the walls slowly slide to form a shooting range, complete with targets and a fully stocked arsenal of firepower. I pause for a second, listening for any sounds that would indicate that someone has heard me or realized I'm here, and am jubilant when I hear none.

I walk over to the wall of guns and select two small ones and tuck them into the belt of my tunic. I then move on to the more serious weapons, and finally settle on two, deadly looking, modified Mog blasters which are light enough for me to hold one in each hand and still shoot comfortably. I'm proud I learnt to shoot back in Chicago, for now, my very chance of escape depends on my ability to shoot my way out of here. I'm surveying the wall for any other gun I may be able to carry when I hear the swish of the sliding doors behind me and whip around as I raise my guns to shoot, only to find that it's not Ra or a Mog, but Five. He takes in my change in outfit, the guns at my waist and in my hands, and seems to put two and two together. "You're trying to escape!", he exclaims, his shock clearly seen on his face as he slowly steps towards me.

All of my previous anger returns at the sound of his voice and my fingers tighten around the triggers. "Stop where you are and put your hands up", I tell him, my voice slightly wavering and he smiles. "Or what? Are you going to fight me?", he asks and I ditch the guns, instead using my telekinesis to slam him against the wall, extremely hard. "Don't tempt me", I snarl as I approach him, my eyes narrowing as I take in his appearance. Apart from the eye patch, he looks pretty much the same as he did when I last saw him in Chicago. Chicago. The attack on the others, and Eight. I can't control my anger and sorrow any longer when I ask, "Why did you do it? Why would you turn against us? What did the Mogs do to you?". He flinches at the desperate tone of my voice, but his is steady as he answers, "My Cepan, Rey died of a human disease only six months after we landed, and I was alone, with no one to guide me and nowhere to go, until the Mogadorians found me. Rey hadn't started training me with my legacies yet, so I was defenceless except for the Charm, that protected me from their initial attack. However, when my Cepan did not come to my aid and I didn't exactly attempt to fight back -you see, I was so afraid, I had practically given up- they figured that there was something about me that was different from the other Garde they had faced, and instead of trying to kill me, they took me in. They gave me food to eat and a place to stay, and exposed me to the teachings of the Great book, which made me realize how petty the Lorics were, and how weak they had allowed themselves to become-".

"Petty? Weak? Is that how you describe your race, who put their faith in you to restore their planet, to bring it back to life?", I ask him, practically fuming but he doesn't respond, and instead continues with his story. "I became a loyal fighter for the Mogadorian cause, and waited for years until I would be called in to play my role to help in Mogadorian progress, and a few weeks ago, it was time. After the battle in Dulce, we confirmed that all the Garde, with exception of me, of course, had found each other. This meant that the charm protecting them had broken, meaning that they all could be killed, irrespective of their numbers, making it the perfect time to strike.", he says and I tighten my hold on him as I say, "You scheming little piece of-".

He never lets me finish, but continues on, ignoring my attempts to stop and yell at him. "I knew they would be looking for me and so I did everything possible to get their attention, and it worked. I convinced you to come and meet me in Arkansas, where we had set up an ambush meaning to capture you all at once, but only Four and Six turned up. Nonetheless we pressed on with the attack, and I was forced to join the fight to convince the Garde that I was indeed on their side. We escaped and made it to Chicago, where I spent the next few days trying to gather as much information about you as I possibly could, hacking into the computer to find your files, getting you to tell me your life stories and conveying it all to the Mogadorian scouts who I had instructed to remain in the city. I had told them to stay hidden, and not attract any attention, but Four spotted a pair of them and found my latest intel, the notes of your chest contents, translated to Mogadorian. I was afraid that I would be suspected, but heaved a sigh of relief when that human, Malcolm, stepped in and claimed responsibility. By this time you had slipped into your dream, and I knew that taking you all down when you were together would be impossible, you all had to be separated. So I fed them the story about my chest, and played on their fears for you, convincing them to send a team with me to the Everglades while the rest of you stayed here. By some luck, John happened to touch you and join you in your dream state, leaving Six, Marina, Eight and Nine to accompany me, making that one less garde to worry about", he says and pauses, giving me the chance to let out all that I've been wanting to say for the past few minutes.

"You disgust me!", I yell and his head snaps up, "How can you say all this so casually? Don't you feel even the slightest bit of guilt? What had Eight ever done to you for you to kill him?", I scream and for the first time, I see regret in his eyes. "I never meant to kill him", he says softly and I ask, "Then why did you do it?". "He teleported in the way when I was...", he starts to say but trails off, shaking his head, "No, telling you would make it worse". "Don't you dare stop now! Answer my question, or else...", I say and he looks up, as if challenging me and asks, "Or else what?". "I'll kill you", I say and at that moment, I'm shocked when I realize I actually mean it. "Go ahead", Five says and to my surprise, he looks rather sad, "But It will change you, and how much ever you hate me now, you will regret it", he says and I have to ask, "If you regret what you did then why won't you answer?".

I practically shout out the last bit and he yells back, regret flashing clearly in his eyes, "Because I was trying to kill Nine!". I'm so shocked I release my hold on him and he falls to the ground. "I hated him so much that when I got the opportunity, I didn't hesitate... Ella, I'm sorry", he says as I back away from him, tears filling my eyes. "You're sorry?", I ask him and he nods, looking warily at me as if I might pin him up against the wall again. "How the hell can you kill someone and then say you're sorry? And what's stopping you from killing me now? Regret?", I ask him and he replies softly, "I'm not going to hurt you, Ella. I regret what I did, yes, and believe me when I say, I don't want you dead". "You want to kill every last Loric on the planet, and the last time I checked, I fall under that category-", I start but he cuts me off. "Ella, if I honestly wanted you dead I would have just told the Mogs that you're not who they think you are. The only reason they have not killed you already is because they believe you are Number Ten, and both of us know you're not!".

I'm in shock as I realize what this means.

He's telling the truth, and I don't doubt that anymore, but one thing still doesn't make sense. "But why?", I ask him and he looks straight at me as he replies. "What I did was unforgivable, I know, but that isn't going to stop me from trying to make amends. I'm not going to fight against you anymore", he says and I can't bring myself to yell at him anymore. He looks so genuinely hurt and sad that telepathy only confirms what I already know, he's on my side.

"Then help me get out of here", I say after a bit and he looks at me like I'm crazy. "Are you mad? This place is crawling with Mogs! Even the garde would be overpowered if they were to try and attack right now!", he says and I'm angry again. "Fine then, if you're not going to help me, you leave me no choice", I say as I lift him into the air again, but this time, he fights back. He throws me backwards and I crash into a pile of exercise mats.

"Ella please! It's to risky to leave now, we'll be killed for sure. The Mogs won't hurt you, so just wait for four more weeks before you try anything!", he pleads and I ask, "Four weeks?". He nods as he continues, "That's when the Dulce reconstruction is scheduled to be completed, and more than half this facility will shift there. Security will be lower and I promise that if you agree to wait, I'll get you out myself", he says and I find myself nodding as I walk forward extending my hand to him.

"Four weeks, no longer than that. And the Chimaera in the Lab, Hope, comes with us", I tell him and he nods, "I can get the Chimaera out too, that's not a problem. But for now, you have to keep up your act as best you can, if they find out-", he starts to say but is cut off by the same swishing noise I heard earlier.

We turn and watch the doors slide open, to reveal none other than Setrakus Ra.

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**Dun dun dun...**

**Yes, I put a plot twist AND a cliffhanger in the same chapter... I'm so nice XD**

**So please review and tell me what you think! Also, most of you got last times EASY trivia question right, the answer is Crayton uses it for his bullets in the Power of Six. :P**

**So don't forget to review/ favourite/ follow and what not... **

**Until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	19. Chapter 18

**Hey guys! I'm back!**

**Thank you everyone who reviewed my last chapter! I'm so thrilled! You won't see Ella for a bit though... sorry :P**

DISCLAIMER: I'm not pittacus lore and so I don't own the lorien legacies :P

**Here's chapter 18!**

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**CHAPTER 18 **

AS SOON AS I TELL HIM WHAT'S HAPPENED, SAM JUMPS OUT OF BED AND SAYS HE'S COMING WITH ME. "I'M FINE SAM, GO BACK TO SLEEP. I CAN HANDLE THIS", I tell him but he shakes his head. " I'm not saying that you can't, but John is my friend too, and plus, it's not like I'm not already fighting an intergalactic war. How bad could an alien nightmare be?", he says and finding no other argument, I let him follow me as I make my way to the living room.

And he's right, he's fighting a war that's not his to fight and deserves to know what is going on. As much as I hate to put him and the others in harm's way, there's only so much I can do. We reach the living room and I take in the expressions of the others around me.

John looks shaken, his hair tousled from sleep and his eyes red and unfocused. Sarah sits beside him, rubbing his back reassuringly but looking worried and confused. Eight sits on a nearby armchair, running his hands through his hair and looking stressed out while Adam sits opposite him and looks to be lost in thought. "What about the others?", I ask when I realize that Marina, Nine, Kiara and Malcolm aren't here.

"We weren't sure whether to wake them or not, I mean, we haven't gotten around to figuring out what their dream means yet", Adam replies and I nod getting his point. The last thing we need right now is to cause unnecessary panic, especially since we just found a place we could consider safe. "So what happened?", Sam asks taking a seat and Sarah starts to explain. "Well about half and hour ago, John started thrashing about in his sleep and murmuring something about Ella and "the tenth" or something like that. I tried to wake him but he didn't respond until later, when he suddenly shot up, gasping for breath". "Eight fell off the bed", Adam supplies and we nod.

"And the dream?", I ask and Eight looks to the door of the dorms, probably wondering if he should wake Marina. "I'll go get her if you want", I tell him but he shakes his head. "No, let her sleep. I don't want to worry her, especially since I...", he trails off but I know what he means. His death was a huge blow on her, and she's only just recovering after his revival. Knowing her boyfriend's having crazy nightmares isn't going to help her in any way. "It started off back in Chicago", John starts to say and I turn to him.

"We watched the penthouse go up in flames and then all of a sudden we were chained up in this large room. That's when they appeared, Ra with Ella by his side. He told us to give up, that the "Tenth" would rise again and that we could do nothing to stop it", John explains and Eight nods. "Of course, as usual he gave us the choice to turn ourselves in, in exchange for you all to be spared and we declined. That's when Ella told us that we were on the losing side, and said something about how the Mogadorians were only trying to help better lorien and how Pittacus Lore apparently made a grave mistake which cost us the planet", he says and John quickly adds,"Well we honestly didn't believe what she said, or even that it was really her and when we said so, she smiled and took out a dagger and stabbed us, saying it was for Mogadorian progress, and we woke up".

I'm in shock. The tenth? The Mogs helping us? Nothing makes any sense. "Well this confirms one thing", Adam says and we turn to him questioningly. "I mean, if we assume your dream and Kiara's from back in Dulce to be connected, then we can safely assume that Ella is with the Mogs now, and not as a prisoner", he says and we lapse into an uncomfortable silence. I don't want to believe it, Ella, working for the Mogs? Would she really do so willingly? "Maybe she was brainwashed, or they did something to her to confuse her", I say desperately theorizing to avoid facing the truth.

"Maybe, but it's not like that's any reassurance. What if we can't reverse what they've done?", Sarah says and we're back to sitting around looking worried. "Well that's only if Kiara's dream is connected yours, and we're not even sure it was a dream or vision", Sam says and I nod. "She didn't have a dream at the same time as you last time, and since she didn't this time either, I guess we can assume the two are not connected", I say and everyone nods. "So should we wake the others?", Adam asks and I'm about to respond when we hear the swish of the dorm door opening. Kiara stumbles out, shaking her head and looking extremely panicked.

She stops and grabs a nearby chair for support while she tries to calm herself."Kiara?", Adam asks and she looks up, her previous panic returning when she sees us. "Did you see it too?", she asks, her voice quivering and I walk over to her. She looks like she's about to collapse and all the color has drained out of her face. "See what?", I ask as I lead her to the sofa where she flops down and puts her head in her hands. "Five, Ella, the Mogs", she manages and I'm about to tell her to calm down when the door wishes open again to reveal a sleepy but clearly worried Marina. "Kiara what happened? You practically jumped out of bed and ran out!", she exclaims catching sight of her and then notices the rest of us.

"What happened? Why are you all awake?", she asks, going to sit by Eight, who puts an arm around her. "It's nothing Mar, John and I had a dream and we we're just discussing it. Nothing to worry about", Eight says and she turns on him. "Eight, stop treating me like a child and tell me what really happened", she says sternly and flinching under her glare, he sighs and explains. "John and I had a dream where Ella joined hands with Setrakus Ra, and we were just discussing whether to wake you up now or wait until morning when Kiara walked in", he says and briefly describes his dream again for their benefit.

"And so now we think that Ella might be working with the Mogs", Eight finishes and turns to Marina, whose face is a mask of shock and hurt. "Are you sure? Ella would never...", she says softly and Eight gives her a squeeze. "Unfortunately, all the evidence points this way", John says and turns to Kiara, who has calmed down slightly. "You had the same dream, right?", he asks her and she shakes her head in response, looking extremely confused. "You didn't?", Eight asks her in disbelief and she replies, "Not the same dream, but now when I come to think of it, it was more of a vision, not a dream. Like last time, I felt like I was actually there, and unlike in your dream, Ra and Ella didn't speak to me, in fact, I doubt they even noticed I was there".

"What do you mean?", Sam asks and she explains. "Remember my dream back in Dulce? When I saw Five being shot? Well it picked up right after that, almost as if someone had hit the pause on a video or something. I saw the bullet ricochet back just inches from his chest and then I saw Ra talk to Ella and tell her that she had proved herself, or something. Then everything went black and the next thing I know, I'm standing in this hall filled with Mogs, all cheering as Ella, Ra and Five stood and smiled from a platform at the end of the room-", she says and Marina cuts her off. "The Mogs, cheering for Ella?", she asks faintly and Kia nods, a pained expression on her face.

"I know, but that's not what bugs me the most, it's what happened after that. You see, just as everything started to turn black again, she spoke. It wasn't like earlier, her voice was somehow stronger, more clear, and panicked. She called out for you guys, and practically begged for you to rescue her. I tried saying something back, but then I woke up", she says and we all stare in shock. "We need to get her out of there! Maybe everything you saw was an illusion, maybe she's being tortured!", Marina cries and lets out a sob. "I don't know Mar", Kiara says, "I think it's a trap".

"What?", she asks, now turning to Kiara, her eyes flashing with hurt and the temperature around us begins to drop.. "A trap? You don't know Ella! She would never join the Mogs! She needs us and we're gonna go get her!", she growls and Eight pulls her back. "Marina, calm down!", he says and her eyes land on him, softening as she sees the worry on his face. Her anger melts away and is replaced by tears that start to run down her cheeks. "It can't be...not Ella….", she says and I look at Kiara, then back at her. Everyone else seems to be too shocked to speak, so I take matters into my hands. "Marina, we're not going to completely ignore her call. For all we know she might have been trying to reach us telepathically", I say and Mar nods.

"She's a telepath?", Kiara asks and I nod, "Except her legacy is still developing, and we're not sure if she would be able to contact you of all people, since you've never really met her". Kiara nods in understanding as I continue, "But we still have to consider that it could be a trap, Kiara's dream unfortunately only seems to confirm the idea that Ella could be against us, but for all we know, Ra could be messing with their heads", I say as I indicate John, Eight and Kia. "He's done it before", John says and Eight nods.

"So I suggest that we wait a few more hours until morning and then tell the others -though that's only Nine and Malcolm- before we decide what to do next", I finish and there are murmurs of agreement from everyone. "So...um… I'm gonna try and get a few more hours of sleep", Adam says, getting up and making for the dorms and everyone else follows him. Sam and I bring up the rear, and as soon as we enter our room he turns to me. "What do you think?", he asks me as I climb into bed and I reply, "I know it seems harsh, but I agree with Kiara. It's unlikely that she would be able to contact us, and her dreams, or visions seem awfully realistic".

He nods but doesn't say anything, but I have a feeling he agrees. I turn over and breathe deeply to calm myself, but I really don't get any sleep. I stay up, thinking about Ella and what the dreams could possibly mean until I drift into a dazed state of being only half awake. Sam wakes me a few hours later and says it's time for breakfast. I quickly wash up and make my way to the kitchen where everyone sits around the breakfast counter. All eyes turn to me as I walk in and Nine looks up from his cereal.

"Who peed in your cornflakes?", he teases and when I don't respond with a comeback he stands up, looking frustrated and slams his hands down on the counter. " OK that's it! One of you idiots had better explain why you're all so wound up or I swear I'll-", he starts to say but Kiara interrupts. "Nine, sit down and relax. Now Six is here, it's time we explain what happened last night", she says and he turns to her. "Last night? Something happened last night and you didn't wake me?", he asks, fuming and ignoring his glare, she explains John and Eight's dreams, as well as her own. Then John tells him about Ella's message and he chokes on his Cheerios.

"What?", he splutters as he recovers and she nods and explains the rest. Once she's done, he sits back and closes his eyes, apparently thinking. "I can't decide if it's a trap or not", he says opening his eyes and turning to Kiara. "I think it is", she says and he raises his eyebrows, "I mean, she's never even met me and these visions...", she trails off and John picks up. "Like we discussed last night, Ra could be messing with your head-", he starts to say but Nine interrupts. "Will you stop with the Pittacus nonsense Johnny for crying out loud!", he yells and John gets to his feet.

"But then how else would you explain her visions?", he asks and Marina says, "Maybe Kia's theory was right, maybe Ra is loric and has telepathy or some other legacy-", she starts to say but Nine lets out an exasperated sigh and turns to her. " OK Marina, I'm done with this crap. Ra can't be loric-". "But why not?", Eight demands and Nine replies, "Because if he was, he would show up on the goddamn tablet wouldn't he?", he says and everyone falls silent. "Maybe he has a legacy that blocks it?", Marina suggests and he scoffs, "One that he uses 24x7? I doubt it, and plus, the tablet picks up Six when she's invisible", he replies and no one argues any further.

I can't believe it, he's right. We were so quick to jump to conclusions...

"I never thought of that", John says quietly and Nine smirks, "Of course you didn't", he says and sits down, taking in our reactions. "So what do we do now?", Kiara asks and Nine shrugs, "We train, and figure out how we're gonna attack that base. I don't want a repeat of Dulce, we need a battle plan", he says and Adam nods. "I lived at Ashwood for awhile, I can draw up some blueprints", he says and Nine nods briefly at him before standing up. "Now If you're all done gaping, it's about time we started training", he says and we quickly finish up our food and follow him into the lecture hall.

To say this training center is incredible, would be a gross understatement.

Weapons line the sound-proofed walls and the room itself is humongous I pick out sensors and cameras mounted to cover every inch of the room. " Whoa", Kiara exclaims as she walks to the center of the room and does a quick 360, "Do you always train like this?", she asks us and I laugh. "Only Nine, I think the rest of us managed in backyards", I say and Eight adds, "Or in the mountains". "I'm going to go check out the drills and software, why don't you all get started", Malcolm says and leaves for the lectern at the end of the room. Nine rubs his hands together in anticipation and smiles, " OK folks, let's see if I can't whip you into shape, literally if required", he says and Kiara and I both shake our heads.

"He's hopeless", I tell her and she laughs as she looks at him, a slight blush forming on her cheeks. Well, this is interesting, I think as I watch her stare intently at Nine as he demonstrates the basics of hand to hand combat. He then pairs us up to practice, and I end up with Kiara. It only takes a few exchanges for me to realize that she's not new to this. While she seems to lack strength, she makes up for it with flawless technique.

"You've done this before", I note as we prepare ourselves for another bout and she nods. "Conrad trained me in this stuff for years, but I'm out of practice, six years asleep can do that to you", she replies and I grin, "Don't worry about it, you just need time", I tell her and she smiles gratefully. We spar for about half an hour before Malcolm's voice interrupts us, " OK guys, I've got this kind of figured out. I'm setting it to basic legacy mode, try and use your legacies one by one", he says as white panels slide over the walls. "I'll go first", John says and lights up his hands. Almost immediately, a computer voice says, "Legacy detected, Lumen".

" Whoa!", Eight exclaims and practically jumps forward, "My turn". A second later he's on the other side of the room and the voice says, "Legacy detected, teleportation". "How does that work?", I ask and Malcolm replies, "By the looks of it, he sensors around the room take in motion, heat and every other type of reading and match it to a legacy... These systems are so advanced I can barely understand them"."That's Sandor for you", Nine says and jumps down from the ceiling to stand next to Kiara.

We try out all our other legacies, and soon discover that Kiara can't use telekinesis yet. "I don't know why, but it never came!", she says looking distressed and Nine puts an arm on her shoulder. "Forget about it, it'll turn up eventually. And now, what do you say to a battle?", he asks her and she shrugs, "Ok, but I want my sword staff", she says and Nine grins. "I wouldn't have it any other way", he says, pulling out his pipe staff and facing off against her in the center.

Surprisingly, she makes the first move, charging at him and slashing at his chest with her weapon. He parries at the last second and soon the two are fully engrossed in battle. Her technique counters his strength, but she soon turns to her legacies, cloning herself repeatedly and teleporting around the room. After unsuccessfully swiping at two of her clones, he manages to grab her but releases her the second she pulls away. I'm confused as to why he didn't pin her then, but I continue to watch them spar.

She's tiring out fast, but manages to disarm Nine and stands over him, about to deliver a final slash when he suddenly disappears. "What?", she asks, looking around wildly and suddenly I realize what he has done. His legacy transfer, he used it the other way around to take her cloning legacy!

I look up at the ceiling and sure enough, there he is, preparing himself to jump down and pin her. I'm about to shout out to her but she looks up as I open my mouth, and Nine comes barelling down. It's too fast for her to react, and she braces herself for impact, but it never comes. Suddenly, a shock wave of blue light bursts out from around her and sends Nine flying across the room, and not a second later, the lights of the training center go off. We're plunged into darkness and John lights up his Lumen and sweeps it around the room.

Kiara stands in the center, unscathed and looking confused while Nine lies on the other side of the room. "The power's gone, and we're connected to the main grid!", Sam exclaims looking worried and I turn to Kiara. "Stop doing whatever it is you're doing!", I tell her and she unclenches her hands. On cue, the lights flicker back on and the computers boot up. "What was that?", she asks and I'm about to reply when the computer voice returns, "Legacy detected", it says, "Energy Manipulation".

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**Oh yay! New legacy! I didn't really bother to come up with names, coz i suck at that... :P**

**Anyway, how do you like my new cover image, I was bored and decided to do something "productive" :P**

**Since you guys apparently liked the trivia idea (Posk123!), here's this times trivia question...**

**What avatars did Eight take while testing Marina, Six and Ella, in that order?**

**Apart from that, I really need advice on what pairings to use with respect to John, Six, Sam and Sarah... what do you guys want to read?**

**So please, please review! and/or PM me or whatever :P**

**Until next time...**

**-thesecondgarde**


	20. Chapter 19

**Hello... I'm back!**

**Yes it's a quick update ! **

**9 reviews on my last chapter and 4000+ total views ! I'm so thrilled! **

**A quick shout out to scone104, TomFieldings, Posk123, taarak, charasweet, Lorienlegacies12, jix and Loricwarrior9!****Thank you all soo much for your constant support and encouragement. Without you guys I'd never have gotten this far!**

**And I read Five's legacy, and unfortunately my story is slightly canon now... but I guess that's ok.. have you read it yet? I've now got a whole lot of theories planned after I finished :P**

**Here's chapter 19... (NinexKiara fans, you'll love this)...**

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**CHAPTER 19**

I WAKE UP AND TRY TO OPEN MY EYES, BUT A SHARP WAVE OF PAIN FORCES ME TO KEEP THEM CLOSED. INSTEAD I FOCUS ON letting my other senses take over , and my enhanced hearing allows me to make out the sounds of people talking even through the heavily insulated walls. This feeling is oddly familiar, except I can't remember from where.

I can vaguely make out Eight and Marina laughing, and groan as I try to get up. My body feels heavy and I have to fight to pull myself to the edge of the bed. I finally manage to open my eyes, and find that I'm in my room. I pull myself to my feet and slowly make my way out of the dorms to the sitting room from where I hear strains of conversation. I shake my head to push away the remaining drowsiness and look around. Eight is stretched out on the couch, his head on Marina's lap while Six and Sam sit on the two-seater nearby. They are all laughing at something Eight says but stop and stare the moment I enter.

"Hello sleeping beauty, glad you could join us", Eight says, referencing my comment from before and I scowl at him. Except the scowl turns out to be more of a grimace because everything I do seems to trigger a headache. "Eight! Give him a break, he's still recovering", Marina chides and pushing him off, walks over to me. "I healed you after the battle, but I didn't work on anything but the physical injuries", she says and I grunt in response. "I have a migraine", I manage and she places her hand on my head.

" I've never tried healing headaches, let's see if this works", she says and I groan as the icy flow of her legacy enters my body. Instantly my headache recedes and I'm able to look around comfortably. I thank Marina and turn to the others, "What exactly happened? I can't remember shit after I jumped off the ceiling", I say and Six laughs.

"You got your ass kicked, big time", she says and everyone starts laughing. "Well it's partially chance", Marina says kindly and I frown. "Will one of you tell me what happened for Lore's sake?", I ask, really frustrated and Sam nods as he recovers. "After you decided to attack from above, Kiara developed a new legacy, Energy Manipulation. She involuntarily created an energy barrier around her and you crashed straight into it and blacked out", he says and I nod.

"How long was I out?", I ask and he replies, "About four hours, John and Eight had to carry you out". Oh great, I'm never going to hear the end of this. "And mind you, I'm never doing that again. What in the world do you eat Nine?", Eight says and I scowl at him, properly this time, before replying, "Not rabbit food like you, if that's what you're asking". He puts on an expression of mock hurt and says, "Oh no you didn't ". I raise my eyebrows at him, not in the mood to deal with this right now and ask, "Where is she?".

"Kiara?", Six asks and I nod. "In the control room with Adam, they've been in there for hours now, I wonder what they're up to…..", she trails off, her tone implying what I'm dreading and Sam wags his eyebrows, making her laugh. Great, just great. I'm out for four hours and Mog boy takes the chance to cosy up to Kia. Just wait 'till I get my hands on him. I walk over to the control room door and it swings open to reveal Kiara and Mog boy sitting and laughing at something on the computer screen.

I cough loudly, barely trying to conceal my annoyance at the sight of the two of them together and they look away, their eyes landing on me. "Nine!", Kia cries, getting out of her chair, and the next thing I know, she's hugging me, her arms placed firmly around my neck. I'm so overwhelmed, it takes me a minute before I can react and place my arms around her waist, pulling her closer.

She pulls away slightly and looks at me as if trying to judge how I feel, and when I say I'm fine, she visibly relaxes. "Thank god! I'm so sorry about what happened! I didn't even realize what I was doing.. I mean one second you're on the ground and then-", she starts to ramble and I shush her, making her blush slightly. God, she's so perfect.

"It's OK , I tell her and she opens her mouth to protest, but I shush her again. "Are you going to apologize to every enemy you knock out on the battlefield?", I ask her and when she shakes her head, I add, "Then you don't have to apologize to me. For the duration of the battle, I was your opponent and it was your job to hurt me, so calm down, 'coz you did a great job". She smiles shyly at the compliment and I'm suddenly faced with the urge to lean in and kiss her. She opens her mouth to say something when Mog boy has the audacity to interrupt.

"Kiara, are we doing this now? Because if we are, I suggest we start now, while we have a few hours before dinner", he says and she pulls away from me to face him. "Oh yeah", she says looking a bit distracted and turns back to me. "Did you eat anything?", she asks me and I shake my head, realizing that I missed lunch. "I'm gonna go make myself a sandwich, you want one?", she asks me and I nod eagerly. She smiles at me and tells Mog boy she'll be back as she leaves the room.

Now it's just me and him. Perfect.

I'm about to open my mouth when he turns to me and says, "You know there's nothing going on between me and her, right?". "What?", I splutter, caught off guard and recovering quickly I add, "What do you mean?". "I mean, that we're just friends, nothing more. She's all yours", he says and I raise my eyebrows at him. "Oh come on!", he says grinning at my expression, "You're so obvious, and she's so oblivious to the fact that you like her!", he says and I scoff. "I don't like her", I say, trying to look as calm and demeaning as possible while I'm actually worried.

Am I that obvious? Shit, there goes the loner, loose cannon image.

"Yeah, because I totally believe you", he says and turns back to the computer before adding, "But I'd be careful if I were you, Eight seems a bit pissed off at the thought of you crushing on her". "Eight is barely a concern", I say, smirking at the thought of getting him angry and he turns back to me. "I wouldn't underestimate a protective brother, trust me, if I saw my sister…", he starts to say but trails off at the mention of his sister. "You have a sister?", I ask and he nods, "More like had. My family kinda disowned me after the whole traitor thing".

"Why did you do it?", I ask him and he replies, "Shift sides? One's responsible for that", he says and his eyes turn a bit wistful. Hell, no. Don't tell me that he…. "You and One were together?", I ask him, the disbelief evident in my tone and he shakes his head. "No, I mean….. it's complicated", he says and sighs. Well well….. this is interesting. I'm about to say something more when the door slides open and Kiara walks in holding a plate piled high with sandwiches.

"Here", she says and I take it from her, grabbing a sandwich and biting into it. She smiles at me before returning to her seat. " OK, lets do this", she says and starts to type, her fingers flying over the keys. "Do what?", I ask going to stand behind her and she replies distractedly. "Remember how a lot of stuff is locked on this thing?", she asks and I grunt a yes, "Well we were thinking about it, and Adam and I thought that we could find a way around it… so I spent the last few hours learning all I could about hacking computers", she says.

"But isn't the system unhackable?", I ask and Mog boy nods, "Supposedly, but we think Sandor might have added a backdoor in the programming, just in case any Cepan ever needed to access all the information. That's what we're looking for". "Were looking for", Kiara adds, "I found it". They sit back and watch as lines of code appear across the screen and suddenly, everything turns black. "What's happening?", Kiara asks, slightly panicking and Adam starts to type furiously. "I don't know, maybe-", he starts to say but is cut off by Sandor's face appearing on screen.

"Well done!", he says and I raise my eyebrows, what's going on? "I'm impressed that you got this far, but I'm sorry to say this is about as far as you'll get. As I said, this baby is unhackable, so you're just going to have to wait until you can access everything", he says and grins before the screen goes black again. "Damn it!", Kiara says and slams her fist against the desk, "He's smarter than I thought". I find myself smiling at her expression and quickly try to cover it up, but Mog boy catches me and smirks.

"Well I'm gonna go find Sam, he said something about video games earlier…", he says, getting up and walking out of the room but not before shooting me a thumbs up behind Kia's back. I scowl and she notices, "What's wrong?", she asks and I quickly shake my head. "Nothing….", I say and sit down next to her, "So what were you guys laughing about when I entered?", I ask and she giggles.

"This", she says and reaches over to open the browser which displays a news website with the headline "TEENAGE GIRL ESCAPES FROM LONDON HOSPITAL", below which is her picture. "You escaped from a hospital?", I ask incredulously and she laughs as she nods her head. "It was quite amusing, and I even got to play matchmaker!", she says and tells me the story. By the end I'm laughing too, and for some reason I'm afraid someone's going to walk in and ruin our moment. I want to spend more time with her.

"Let's go", I say suddenly and she stops laughing and looks at me. "Where?", she asks, the smile not leaving her face and I reply, "To see New York". She looks at me like I'm crazy and says, "You're kidding, right?", and when I shake my head, she turns serious. "Nine, I don't think that's a good idea…. I mean, we're in the middle of a war-", she starts to say but I cut her off, "So? That's all the more reason to take some time off. We need to de-stress", I tell her, praying that she agrees. "But-", she starts to protest but I add, "Only for a few hours, and I'll buy you ice cream".

She looks at me for a minute, and I don't know what convinced her, the time frame of the ice cream, when she says yes. I jump out of my seat and grab her hand pulling her up with me. "Come on then!", I say and she raises her eyebrows, " Shouldn't we tell someone?", she asks and I shake my head, knowing full well that any mention of this would be met with immediate opposition. "They'll never know we're gone, and we'll take this", I say and grab a device off the counter top

An iMog.

I recognized it the second I walked in. "An iPod?", she asks me and I smirk, "An iMog", I correct and she looks uncertainly at the device in my hand. "It detects Mogs in a given radius, and should give us enough warning. Plus, it has a homing and call facility, the others should be able to reach us if anything happens", I tell her and she nods. "Fine then, so how do we leave?", she asks and I take her hand. "You teleport us out", I tell her and she looks worried. " I've never tried it with anyone before", she tells me and I give her hand a squeeze, "Come on, just try". She closes her eyes and I feel the world fall out from below me, and a second later we're standing on the pavement in front of the airport.

"I did it!", she cries and jumps up and down in excitement, "Now let's go!". We end up taking a cab to the center of the city, and after customary visits to Times Square, The Statue of Liberty and the works, we end up in Central park, walking hand in hand while she eats her promised ice cream. "So, what's up with you and Mog boy?", I ask her and she turns to me, looking amused. "You mean Adam? Well nothing…", she says and looks at me, confused by my sudden question. "Don't you like him?", I ask and am relieved when she shakes her head in response.

"But now, while we're on the topic…", she starts to ask, raising her eyebrows mockingly and I'm suddenly worried. "What's up between you and Six?", she asks and I heave a sigh of relief, that I quickly turn into a scoff. "Me and Six? Where did you get that from?", I ask her and she smiles at me, nudging me with her elbow. "She told me you call her sweetheart, and come on, you're both all "badass"-y", she says and I laugh. "Badass-y?", I ask her and she shrugs, "Answer the question".

"Well how much ever "Sweetheart" fancies me, I assure you, it's not mutual. Why, are you interested?", I tease and am surprised when a light blush appears on her cheeks, barely noticeable owning to her tanned skin. "What makes you think that?", she asks me, her voice a little higher than usual and I smirk at her, letting her question hang. She shakes her head at me and looks at her ice cream. "You know Nine, you're a lot like this ice cream", she tells me and I tell her to go on as I look at her chocolate covered soft-serve. "I mean, you put up these tough barriers on the outside, but when you manage to break through them, what's inside is actually really sweet", she says and takes a bite off the top to reveal the vanilla ice cream.

"Uh..", I say, not really sure how to respond. I'm about to ask her how she noticed something like that when she says, "But I'm crazy, so really, just try and forget everything I just said". "I don't think you're crazy", I blurt out before I can stop myself and she turns to me, smiling slightly. "Thanks Nine", she says softly and I squeeze her hand, contemplating whether or not to take things a bit further. Before I get around to doing anything, though, she suddenly glances at her watch and exclaims, "Nine! We've been out three hours!". "So?", I ask and she turns to me, " We've got to get back! Oh my god, Eight's gonna kill me!", she practically yells and pulls me out of the park. We hail a cab and soon are headed towards the airport.

"Calm down", I tell her when we're standing outside the door to the bunker. She insisted that we enter through the front and explain instead of making up an excuse after teleporting in and of course, I had to agree. "But-", she starts to protest but I cut her off, "If anything happens, it's my fault. I'm the one who insisted you come out and if any one's responsible, it's me", I tell her and add, "So stop worrying". She looks at me uncertainly and when I smile back, she throws her arms around me.

"Thanks for a wonderful evening Nine", she says softly as I wrap my arms around her. "Anytime", I whisper back into her hair and she pulls away. "And we're in this together, I'm just as guilty as you are", she says, smiling slightly as she reaches up and kisses me lightly on the cheek. She takes my hand and pulls me inside, and thankfully I had already entered the access code, because right now, I don't think I can form a coherent sentence. I'm trying to clear my head and come up with some passable excuse when Kiara suddenly stops and curses under her breath.

I look up and find myself face to face with an extremely angry Eight.

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**Uh oh... :P**

**Is Nine too OOC? *worried face* and I need a ship name... NinexKiara is hard to type :P**

**And the answer to last times trivia question is Kurma, Parashurama and Narasimha... if you didn't get it, go read the rise of nine again :P And here's this week question...**

**What was Marina's name when she traveled through (a) Poland and (b) Denmark? (Yes, I know it's hard... :P)**

**So what did you like about this chapter? And what didn't you?**

**Tell me what you think! I hope I can cross 100 reviews!**

**Until next time**

**-thesecondgarde**


	21. Chapter 20

**100 Reviews! (This AN is going to be long...)**

**At what I consider to be a milestone achievement, I'd like to thank ****everyone **** who has supported me on this story, from all my reviewers, to the 15 people who have added my story to their favorites and the 16 who follow it...**

**Your support has kept me going and pushed me to come up with theories (and cliffhangers) that have made this story what it is... Thank you all so much.. and I'd love for you all to continue supporting me through the next few chapters... **

**Special thanks to TomFieldings, Posk123 and scone104, who have reviewed practically all my chapters... I really love that you've taken the time to write, Thank you so much...**

**I'll be honest, there were times I was really discouraged by the lack of response, but that's when I found people who have stuck with me, reviewing all my chapters and giving me the assurance that there is someone out there who actually reads this...**

**So I'm sorry for the long sentimental A/N, And here's chapter 20 !**

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**CHAPTER 20**

EIGHT STANDS WITH HIS ARMS CROSSED, STARING MENACINGLY AT NINE AND I'M SURE I'VE NEVER SEEN HIM THIS ANGRY BEFORE. Nine stares back, stubbornly refusing to avert his gaze while Kiara watches the two of them, a worried look on her face. She catches sight of me and shoots me a pleading look and I shrug, I'm helpless right now. I've already tried calming him down but nothing has worked so far, and I doubt it will now that he's been waiting nearly two hours to tell them off.

Eight and I had been spending some "quality time" together after Sam and Six left us on the couch to go check out some equipment when he had brought up the topic of going to see New York again. I had initially refused, but once he said that we would tell the others this time, I changed my mind. Just then Adam walked out of the control room and announced that he would be playing video games with Sam in the hall, and we got up to leave. We headed for the library, and among the piles of Loric books, we managed to locate a guide book to the city. Once I finished looking through it, we went to find the others and tell them our plans.

We found John, Sarah, Malcolm, Six, Sam and Adam easily enough, but when we entered the control room to tell Nine and Kiara, it was empty. That's when we got worried. Eight teleported around the bunker looking but didn't find them anywhere. That's when I switched on the computer to see a map of New York with a single blinking dot travelling away from our hideout, and knew instantly what they had done. Eight went ballistic, and was about to go after them when I told him to let them be and wait until they get back. I tried to reason with him, but to no avail, he's taking this whole protective brother thing a little too seriously.

"Where have you been?", Eight demands and Kiara hurries to answer, "We went out for a bit. I wanted to see New York and decided I needed a tour guide so I forced Nine to come with me and-". "You forced Nine?", Eight sneers, "I don't believe you. I'm sure it was all this idiot's idea to go gallivanting about the city when we've just found a place to stay and are in the middle of a war". He pokes Nine in the chest accusingly and he swats his hand away. "Like that stopped you back in Chicago", Nine growls back and Eight's face only grows darker. "We were in no immediate danger back then-", he starts to reply but Nine cuts him off, "Like we're in any now! Hell it's not like even if anything happened I wouldn't be able to handle it!". "Oh right, because you're extremely responsible, don't react impulsively and prefer to stay as far away from trouble as possible, right?", Eight asks, his voice rising and I see Nine's jaw clench up as he continues.

"And plus, you totally considered the fact that you put not only yourself, but my sister in danger too. My sister, who just woke up from six years in a coma and has barely had enough training?", Eight asks and Nine replies, "Six years asleep and you expect her to stay put? The girl wants to get out and see what she's missed and plus, I've had more training than you can imagine so it's not like she was in any immediate danger". Eight opens his mouth to retort but before he can say anything, Kiara buts in.

"Excuse me, but I'm perfectly capable of defending myself, and plus, I told you it was my idea. Eight, we're back and we're fine, stop making this a big deal-", she says but he turns to her furiously, "Stay out of this, I'll deal with you later", he snaps and Nine grabs him roughly by the shoulder, "Don't yell at her, if you have anything to say, say it to me". Eight shrugs his hand off and shoves Nine backwards, and not to be outdone, Nine shoves him right back. "Guys, please-", I start to protest but Eight glances at me and says, "Marina, this does not concern you".

"But it concerns me, and I'm asking you to calm down!", Kiara pleads and Eight glares at her, "Don't ask me to do anything for you if you consider your _boyfriend's_ view on this to be correct", he snarls and Nine yells back, "Enough with the tough talk, you know I can kick your ass any day". "Oh yeah, after you just got beat by a girl?", Eight challenges and Kiara protests, "What is that supposed to mean?". But they ignore her, and Nine says, "Oh it's on…", and the two of them glare at each other as they head for the lecture hall.

Kiara comes up to me, glancing quickly at the boys and asks, "Can't you stop them?". I shake my head woefully and reply, "It's no use. Eight's been worried about Nine playing you all week, and Nine is a little pissed after losing to you. They both need to blow off some steam, and this is just their way of doing it", I say, partly to reassure myself and we follow them into the lecture hall.

Sam, Six and Adam stand against the wall, having been disturbed from their practice by Eight and Nine's fighting, and the two of them square off at the center of the room. Eight starts it off by morphing to the same lion-headed avatar he used against Nine last time and lunges at him. Nine smirks, using his super speed to evade the swiping hands and runs up the ceiling, from where he jumps onto Eight's back. "You're too predictable, Lover boy", he taunts as he punches Eight's ears but doesn't see what Eight has planned until it's too late.

Eight morphs into a monstrous, two headed serpent and uses his second head to grab Nine off him while he's occupied with the first. His teeth sink into Nine's side and he yells in agony. Kiara, who has been just as worried as I am since the beginning of the fight steps forward and yells, "Eight! That's enough!", but he ignores her as Nine stands up and brings out his pipe staff. "Now you're just asking for it", he snarls and running so fast that he's a blur, he initiates a quick series of blows which leave deep gashes along Eight's body, and he's forced to revert back to his original form.

"Nine, please!", Kiara yells, her tone pleading as Eight pulls himself up, determined to go on. The two give up legacies and weapons and resort to hand to hand combat to settle the fight, pummeling each other so hard, it hurts just to watch. Kiara looks at me desperately and cries, "Do something!", and I try to pull them apart with my telekinesis, but it's no use. I glance at Six and she tries with me, but they fight back. We continue trying as I look at Kiara to see her face contorted in concentration, anger, and frustration.

"They're resisting us!", I yell back at her as I notice the lights starting to flicker and small sparks starting to jump out from the nearby sockets. Her legacy must be activating now that she's upset, I figure and am about to call out to her to relax when suddenly, Eight and Nine go flying in opposite directions. "Enough!", she yells, raising her outstretched hands and they float upward, looking shocked at her outburst.

I guess her telekinesis couldn't have picked a better time to show up.

"I can't believe you two chose to sort this out by beating each other up!", she yells, clearly disappointed in them. "Eight, I'm sorry I didn't tell you, and I know I should have, but you have to learn to trust me more. I might not have had as much time to train as you have, but I can still hold my own in a fight. It's not like I walked out without considering the danger, we took our weapons and made sure we had a way to contact you, and for you to contact us", she says and Eight stares back at her as she turns to Nine, "And you! There was no need for you to get so defensive! We made a mistake and we have to accept that. You can't expect everyone to be OK with what we did, and it's not like you didn't know that we would probably get in trouble once we got back", she cries and he looks ashamed. "I can't even… ugh ", she yells, releasing them and storming out of the room as the lights continue to dim and brighten up as she exits.

"That was scary", Adam says and Sam nods, "Seriously dude, remind me not to piss her off". I look at Eight, who has gotten to his feet and walked over to Nine, who is currently examining his injuries. He says something to him, extending his hand and after a moment of hushed, brief conversation, Nine takes it and they shake. I walk over to them and they turn to me, looking sheepish as they hold out their hands. I raise my eyebrows at them, but heal them anyway, knowing fully well that they've learnt their lesson, even if it's just for now.

"Can you go check if its safe…?", Eight asks me and I laugh at his nervousness. "I'll go, but you know she's not going to forgive you easily, right?", I ask him and he nods solemnly and turns to Nine, who grunts his agreement. I head out of the lecture hall and find Kiara in our room. She's lying on the bed, staring up at the ceiling while she levitates various small items like her hairbrush, toothpaste and one of her sneakers. When I enter, she glances quickly at me before setting them down and pulling herself into a sitting position.

"Was I too harsh?", she asks looking a bit worried and I laugh as I shake my head. "If you ask me, you got the point across quite efficiently, and scared the crap out of Adam and Sam", I reply and she laughs shakily and I smile. "They want to talk to you", I add and she nods, "Yeah, I figured they would, where are they?", she asks and the door opens slightly as Eight peeps in. "Is it safe to enter?", he asks and we laugh as he opens the door and steps in, followed by Nine. " Um… we're sorry", Nine says looking at her while rubbing the back of his neck uncomfortably, and she smiles, "It's OK, I'm just glad you got the point".

"That we did", Eight says, "And I think this is the first time I've ever heard Nine apologize to someone, wow he must really like you", he adds and Kiara blushes faintly while Nine glares at him. "Well anyway", I say, trying to break up the awkward moment, "Kiara got her telekinesis!". Kiara instantly brightens up at the mention of her new legacy and proceeds to demonstrate by levitating random objects around the room. "Finally!", she adds and then looks a bit down, "Though I wish Conrad had been around to see it, he waited for months for it to appear".

"I'm sure he knows and is proud of you", I tell her and she nods sadly before Nine says, "Anyway, we can finally get down to some serious legacy training now, unless there are a few more hidden legacies that are yet to appear?", he asks and she shakes her head. "I don't think so, Eight and I should have the same number of legacies, since we're the same age. How many do you have?", she asks him and he counts on his fingers, "Teleporting, shape shifting, walking on water, precognition…. four not counting my telekinesis", he replies and she nods, "And I have duplication, morphing, teleportation and energy manipulation, that's four. So I guess I'm not getting any new ones any time soon". She gets off the bed and turns to Nine, "Do you think you can help me practice, I really want to master these legacies as soon as possible", she asks him and he nods. "Finally someone who's serious about winning this war. Lead the way", he tells her and they leave the room.

"Well", Eight says turning to me, "I can't say I'm happy about that". "Give it a rest Eight", I tell him as he sits down next to me, "You know it's funny to see you all serious and me actually letting things slide for once…", I tease and he grins. "Yeah, but don't get used to it. I'm known for doing stupid stuff when people least expect it", he says and leans in, just as Sarah bursts into the room.

"Where have you been? You missed practically everything!", I exclaim, catching sight of her and she smiles. "You can tell me all about it later. John asked me to find you two, he said it's time you named your Chimaera", she says and Eight asks, "Our Chimaera?". "Well yeah, I mean, John has BK and Adam had Dust…", she trails off and I jump off the bed. "Where are they?", I ask and she laughs at my excitement, "In the living room, come on!", she says and leads the way out of the room. Eight follows us with an expression of mock hurt on his face.

"What?", I ask him and he replies, "Well you're never so excited to see me!", he whines and I give him a quick kiss. "You wouldn't know…", I tell him and he smirks, leaning in for more but I push him away. "Eight, the Chimaera!", I protest and he exclaims, "See! I knew it!". Sarah shakes her head, grinning at his antics as we approach the group of Chimaera. Kiara, Nine and Six are already playing with three of them, which I assume they have already picked for themselves. "Hey Marina!", Kiara trills as I enter and giggles when her Chimaera shifts from a kitten to a bird and sits on her head. "Meet Myrah", She says, indicating her Chimaera, which shifts back to a kitten and jumps down onto her lap.

"She's so cute", I say, reaching down to pet her and smiling when she purrs. "Byescoe!", Nine calls as his Chimaera, in the form of a large German shepherd tackles Eight to the ground and gives a loud bark. "Byescoe?", Eight asks as the dog returns to Nine's side and sits down beside him. "Yeah, Sandor told me I had a Chimaera named Byescoe back on Lorien, so I thought, why not?", he says as Byescoe barks. Suddenly he starts laughing and Eight looks confused. "Man, I love this Chimaera!", he exclaims and Kiara asks, "What just happened?".

"Well Byescoe just wanted me to inform your darling brother that with a name like Eight, he really shouldn't be the one talking", Nine says and Kiara facepalms. "Anyway, moving on from Nine's sad attempts at humour, this is Katar", Six says and her Chimaera, in the form of a Tiger lazily opens one eye. "Well I see the resemblance", Eight says and both Six and Katar look at him as if to say, really? I look at the two remaining Chimaera and hold out my hand for the nearest one, which observes me carefully. Eight on the other hand, is less subtle, leaning forward to pick up the other one, which is a Labrador, and rubbing it behind the ears. The Chimaera wags it's tail in response and licks his face happily. "Well I guess it's you and me then", he says and the Chimaera gives a short bark of approval. "Now what do you think of Reynolds? It was my Cepan's name", he asks and in response, Reynolds barks twice and licks his face again.

I turn away from Eight as I feel something warm brush against my arm and look down to see the last Chimaera, in the form of a black cat. I stroke it's fur gently and to my great surprise, it gives a small "meow" and curls up on my lap. "Legacy", I say remembering the cat I healed back in Santa Teresa. "That's a nice name", Kiara says coming to sit by me and I smile. Moments like these are rare when you're an alien teenager fighting a war to revive your dying planet, but however wonderful it is, it feels like something, or someone is missing.

"Ella would have loved to see this", I say softly and Kiara looks at me, her previous excitement lost to worry and concern. "Do you really think she would join them?", I ask her and she shakes her head. "I agree with Six. I don't think anyone would join the Mogs willingly, after what they've done to Lorien and what they plan to do to Earth", she replies and I nod slowly. "We'll get her back Marina, maybe not today or tomorrow, but really soon. I promise", she tells me and I look at her, grateful to have someone who understands.

I'm about to say something more when John walks in with BK on his heels, a smile plastered on his face. "What is it?", Kiara asks noticing his excitement and his smile only grows wider.

"You'll have to come see for yourselves... I think we might have a new ally".

* * *

**The answer to last weeks trivia question was Minka and Yasmin... good job if you got it right!**

**Anyway, I've got some crazy battle scenes planned ahead, just saying... So don't worry action lovers, I promise the good stuff's coming soon...**

**Oh and please take a look at my other story: No need to say goodbye!**

**Well, I'd love some reviews for this chapter, so tell me what you think!**

**Until next time...**

**-thesecondgarde**


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